The squad has strong depth across all departments.
The Punjab Kings squad looks one of the most balanced after the IPL 2026 auction. PBKS made smart moves despite entering the mini auction with the second lowest purse among all ten teams.
Last season’s runners up had already retained 21 players before the auction and only needed to fill four slots. They had INR 11.50 crore available and stayed quiet for most of the bidding. PBKS made their first move in the accelerated round by signing Australian batting all rounder Cooper Connolly for INR 3 crore.
Later, the Punjab Kings squad added Australian pacer Ben Dwarshuis for INR 4.40 crore. They also picked up Pravin Dube and Vishal Ninad for INR 30 lakh each. After the auction, the PBKS squad looks well balanced and is one of the best for the upcoming IPL 2026 season.
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Punjab Kings retained their key players from the IPL 2025 season, including captain Shreyas Iyer, who scored 604 runs at an average of 50.33 and a strike rate of 175.07. Their openers, Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh, were also retained. Priyansh scored 475 runs at a strike rate of 179.25, while Prabhsimran made 549 runs at a strike rate of 160.53.
They also kept their finisher Shashank Singh, who scored 350 runs at an average of 50.00 and a strike rate of 153.51. Middle order batter Nehal Wadhera was retained as well after scoring 369 runs at a strike rate of 145.85. Punjab Kings also have good backup options in the squad, including Vishnu Vinod, Pyla Avinash, and Harnoor Pannu.
By adding Cooper Connolly and Ben Dwarshuis, the PBKS squad has strengthened its all rounder options. They had already retained experienced players like Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, who took 16 wickets, and Mitchell Owen.
Punjab Kings also have young backup options such as Musheer Khan and Suryansh Shedge. With so many all rounders in the squad, PBKS have more depth in this department than most other teams. They have both types of all rounders in the squad, with options who bowl spin as well as pace.
Coming to the bowling attack, PBKS have Arshdeep Singh and Marco Jansen leading the pace unit, with Azmatullah Omarzai also contributing as a pace bowling all-rounder. Along with them, they also have Lockie Ferguson and Xavier Bartlett in the squad. For backups, they have Vijaykumar Vyshak and Yash Thakur.
In the spin department, Yuzvendra Chahal and Harpreet Brar are the two main spinners. They also have Cooper Connolly and Musheer Khan as backup spin options, along with new signings Pravin Dube and Vishal Ninad, which adds further depth.
Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer, Azmatullah Omarzai, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh.
They can utilize one of their overseas players from the squad as an impact player.
With an explosive top order, reliable finishers, strong spin hitters, deep batting, varied spin options, effective powerplay bowling, and excellent squad depth, the PBKS squad stands out as one of the best teams after the IPL 2026 auction. Punjab Kings look well prepared to challenge for the title in the upcoming season as they hunt for their first IPL trophy.
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