While the masses anticipated the forecasted ‘Orange Alert’ in Mullanpur, it was the ‘Pink Storm’ of Rajasthan Royals that ultimately halted Punjab Kings’ winning streak at their fortress, the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh PCA International Stadium.The batting-heavy Kings suffered their first defeat of the season, going down to the Royals by six wickets. It was the second time at home that the Kings’ bowlers allowed opponents to cross the 200-run mark. Despite this setback, the Kings concluded their home campaign at this venue with three victories— their best-ever IPL record here— before shifting to their second base at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala.On the evening, Royals’ Donovan Ferreira (52 off 26 balls) and impact substitute Shubham Dubey (31 off 12 balls) ensured full points for their side, chasing down 223 with four balls to spare. Yet it was Indian teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi who set the tone for victory. His blistering 43 off just 16 balls, featuring three boundaries and five sixes, gave the Kings’ bowlers a harsh reality check.Yashasvi Jaiswal (51 off 27 balls, seven boundaries and one six) opened the innings, while Sooryavanshi faced Arshdeep Singh, the two-time T20 World Cup-winning bowler. Arshdeep delivered two consecutive yorkers, the only dot balls Sooryavanshi faced. On the third, he launched his assault with a towering six. He punished Marco Jansen and Lockie Ferguson in similar fashion, as the Royals raced to 50 in just 19 balls— with Sooryavanshi contributing 43 alone. Attempting another big shot off Arshdeep, he was eventually caught by Suryansh Shedge.Thereafter, it was Jaiswal, who ensured the team didn’t go dry on runs. However, Yuzvendra Chahal (3/36) brought some relief for the Kings, as he had Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (20) and Riyan Parag (29). However, the duo of Ferreira and Dubey were on the job. Needing 71 off the last six overs, Ferreira smashed his way to an unbeaten 52.Ferreira was brilliant while picking his areas as Arshdeep, Ferguson and Jansen. In the 18th over, Ferguson bowled a tight over, but a boundary off the last ball was the start of the Kings’ downfall. Ferreira and Dubey hit nine fours and five sixes.Stoinis’ power surgeMarcus Stoinis, promoted up the order in Shashank Singh’s absence, was in full flow. He smashed a 20-ball half-century and launched a ferocious assault against Brijesh Sharma in the final over, plundering 24 runs in boundaries and sixes. His unbeaten 62 off 22 balls, including four fours and six sixes, propelled the Kings to 222/4 in 20 overs— their third 200-plus score at this ground.However, Prabhsimran Singh played sensibly. The Patiala lad played slowly but managed 59 off 44 balls. His 59-run partnership with Cooper Connolly (30 off 14 balls) was settling well, but didn’t last long. And the credit was to Yash Raj (2/41), the 6.4 feet tall leg-spinner for varying his pace, not being afraid to flight and alter the length as and when required and keeping things tight till the 16th over. Even Shreyas Iyer (30) played a small cameo, and took 27 balls to achieve the feat. However, it was Stoinis, who bludgeoned his way to an unbeaten rampage of boundaries. The Royals’ bowlers conceded 55 in the last three overs.