New PCA Stadium, Mullanpur hosts Punjab Kings versus Kolkata Knight Riders on the IPL 2026 schedule (Match 57, 7:30 PM IST first ball).
The New PCA Stadium surface is bowler-friendly Mullanpur surface, 11 of last 14 games scored under 170. Par score is 165 first-innings par, and spin economy is the captain pick. PBKS have leaned on Shashank Singh and Glenn Maxwell for top-order runs through this stretch of the season; their bowling stack rests on Arshdeep Singh swinging the new ball. KKR counter with Sunil Narine anchoring and Varun Chakaravarthy as the breakthrough bowler.
My captain pick is Shashank Singh. Vice-captain Sunil Narine balances the team across both sides. Third pick Prabhsimran Singh for the differential edge in big contests.
Want the full Dream11 team plus probable XI for both sides? Detailed match preview with both teams' probable XI, captain stack, budget alternative team, and pitch report → ipl-predict.in match 57.
With 26 fixtures still to play before the IPL 2026 playoffs cut on 19 May, every match shifts the points-table maths. Punjab Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders both have implications on the playoff race — Kolkata Knight Riders are tracking the seeding race more aggressively, and the result here can flip a top-4 vs eliminator outcome by net run-rate alone.
For Dream11 lineup construction the key inputs are the venue (above), the toss decision (chasing teams have been winning roughly 60% of night games at New PCA Stadium this season), and the lineup confirmation 30 minutes before first ball. Lock your team after the toss when possible.