Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Mitchell Starc was all set to open the bowling for Delhi Capitals against Punjab Kings in their crucial IPL 2026 clash at Dharamsala. But PBKS opener Priyansh Arya had other plans. On the very first ball of the match, Priyansh stepped out and smashed Starc for a stunning six over cover point, immediately putting Delhi Capitals under pressure and lighting up the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium crowd.
The shot also helped Priyansh enter an elite IPL list of batters to hit a six off the very first ball of a match. Before him, only a handful of players had achieved the rare feat – Naman Ojha against Brad Hodge in Durban in 2009, Virat Kohli off Varun Aaron in Bengaluru in 2019, Phil Salt off Nuwan Thushara in Kolkata in 2024, and Priyansh himself against Khaleel Ahmed in Mullanpur in 2025.Interestingly, earlier this season Yashasvi Jaiswal had also smashed Starc for a six off the opening ball in Jaipur.With this latest maximum, Yashasvi continues to lead the chart for most sixes off the first ball of an IPL innings with four, while Priyansh moved to second place with three.Earlier, Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel won the toss and opted to field first. Delhi made five changes to their playing XI, bringing in Abishek Porel, Sahil Parekh, David Miller, Madhav Tiwari and Aaquib Nabi.Punjab Kings, meanwhile, handed a debut to Australian left-arm pacer Ben Dwarshuis, who replaced the injured Lockie Ferguson.Six off the first ball of an IPL matchNaman Ojha (RR) off Brad Hodge (KKR), Durban, 2009Virat Kohli (RCB) off Varun Aaron (RR), Bengaluru, 2019Phil Salt (KKR) off Nuwan Thushara (MI), Kolkata, 2024Priyansh Arya (PBKS) off Khaleel Ahmed (CSK), Mullanpur, 2025Yashasvi Jaiswal (RR) off Mitchell Starc (DC), Jaipur, 2026Priyansh Arya (PBKS) off Mitchell Starc (DC), Dharamsala, 2026*Most times, hitting six on the first ball of an IPL innings4 – Yashasvi Jaiswal3 – Priyansh AryaPBKS vs DC: Playing XIsPunjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Suryansh Shedge, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Ben Dwarshuis, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.Delhi Capitals: KL Rahul (wk), Abishek Porel, Sahil Parakh, Tristan Stubbs, David Miller, Axar Patel (c), Madhav Tiwari, Mukesh Kumar, Auqib Nabi Dar, Mitchell Starc, Lungi Ngidi.
