IPL 2026: Punjab Kings' strongest predicted XI against Kolkata Knight Riders

The Punjab Kings play in their second consecutive away game when they travel to West Bengal to face the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens in Match 12 of the 2026 Indian Premier League on Monday, April 06.

Shreyas Iyer’s side are one of the form teams in the tournament’s early stages, having won both of their opening games so far, against the Gujarat Titans and most recently against the Chennai Super Kings at the MA Chidambaram Stadium. 

After winning the toss and deciding to bowl first, PBKS knew they had to be at their brilliant best after CSK put 209 on the board. Vijaykumar Vyshak was once again the pick of the bowlers, taking two wickets, following up with the three wickets that he picked against GT in New Chandigarh. 

PBKS secured a five-wicket victory at Chepauk after chasing down the total with eight balls to spare. They were given an excellent start by Priyansh Arya, who scored 39 from just 11 deliveries. Once he was dismissed, the mantle was taken over by fellow opener Prabhsimran Singh, who hit 43, and captain Iyer, who scored 50 to take his side home.

With two victories already under their belt, there are few to no reasons for PBKS to make any changes to their playing 12, unless there is an unfortunate injury. 

Here is PBKS’ strongest predicted XI vs KKR, Match 12, IPL 2026:

Top Order: Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly

PBKS have a top order where every player is performing to the best of their abilities. Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya have been excellent at the top of the order. The former has scored 80 runs from two matches whilst playing at a strike rate of 137.93.

Cooper Connolly, however, has been the star of this top order. Making his IPL debut against GT, the Australian scored an unbeaten 72 to win them the game before 36 against CSK a game later.