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PSL 2026 started on Thursday night at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore and the opening match between Lahore Qalandars and debutants Hyderabad Kingsmen produced something that nobody in the ground had quite seen before.

What happened in PSL 2026 opening game and when it became a problem

Lahore batted first and posted 199 for 6 in 20 overs with Fakhar Zaman scoring 53 off 39 balls, Haseebullah Khan contributing 40 off 28 and Sikandar Raza producing a brutal cameo of 24 off 10 balls.

Hydera bad Kingsmen then came out to chase in their maroon kit and almost immediately the colour started transferring onto the white ball from the pads.

Labuschagne said he raised it with the umpires after just the second over. "I did say to the umpires after the second over what is going on the ball is all red. Obviously it must be from the clothes or something like that. I have not seen anything like that before but I have seen the ball take colour from the paint of the pads or from something off the bat. I am sure we will sort it out before our next game on Sunday."

The maroon tinge on the ball was visible to the naked eye from the media box by the end of the powerplay.

Despite the concern being raised that early the chase continued with the discoloured ball until the 15th over when it was finally changed. Labuschagne confirmed afterward that the umpires had no objection to Kingsmen continuing with the same kit for the rest of the tournament.

Also READ: PSL 2026 begins today: Revised schedule, updated squads and all you need to know

What Haris Rauf said and the pink ball joke that followed

Lahore pacer Haris Rauf offered a different explanation for the discolouration suggesting the ball may have picked up colour from the seats in the stands rather than the kit.The problem with that theory is that the seats at Gaddafi Stadium are green and white.

Rauf said he would have asked for the ball to be changed immediately if he had been batting. "I am not certain who got the ball changed. We cannot ascertain whether it was because of the kit. It may well have been because of the seats as the ball flew out of the ground quite a few times. As long as the batters continued to see the ball clearly they batted. They may have changed it when it got difficult to pick. Had I gone to the crease to bat I would have had it changed first ball."

After the match Kingsmen posted on X congratulating Lahore on winning their first pink-ball game. It was a good line from a team that had just been bowled out for 130 chasing 200 in their PSL debut.

The match result for Hyderabad Kingsmen against Lahore Qalandars

On the scorecard Lahore were simply too good. Rauf took 2 for 22, Raza took 2 for 27, Mustafizur Rahman took 1 for 19 and Shaheen Shah Afridi took 1 for 28 as Kingsmen were dismissed in the final over for 130.

Labuschagne top-scored in the chase with 26 off 22 balls in what was a largely disappointing batting display from the new franchise. Labuschagne confirmed after the game that the umpires had no objection to Kingsmen continuing with the same kit for the rest of the tournament, but it is safe to assume the kit issue will be sorted well before their next game on Sunday. The 69-run defeat on the other hand will take a little longer to process.