Rohit Sharma made Punjab pay for dropping him at 6. He went on to score a fifty off just 27 balls (file photo) © Getty Images

Yuvraj Singh, the Kings XI Punjab captain, was pleased with Kumar Sangakkara's performance on his return from injury but had concerns over his side's poor fielding against the Deccan Chargers.

"We need to sort out our fielding," Yuvraj said. "This is something we are going to have a chat about." Sloppy work on the field allowed Deccan to set Punjab a competitive target of 176. While Ramesh Powar and Sreesanth gave away runs with mis-fields, VRV Singh dropped Rohit Sharma on the boundary when he was on 6 and that proved costly for Punjab as Rohit went on to score a 27-ball 50.

"We have to improve our fielding if we have to go to the final," Yuvraj said. Punjab, who are through to the semi-finals, beat Deccan by six wickets following Sangakkara's 84-run opening partnership with Shaun Marsh.

"Sangakkara has shown a lot of discipline. The way he has been preparing himself during the past two weeks with his rehabilitation and workouts needs to be appreciated," Yuvraj said. Sangakkara missed five matches because of a rib injury but looked in fine touch on Friday as he scored the second fastest half-century - 50 off 23 balls - for the second time in the tournament.

Adam Gilchrist, Deccan's captain, felt his side had made positive strides in their last two games. "I think we as a group have not contributed ... however, I have belief in these guys and believe they can make an impact," Gilchrist said. "My experience in the IPL has been fantastic and I have really enjoyed it though I had to sit back and wonder why we did not do better."

Both teams have two league games left - Deccan against Bangalore Royal Challengers and Chennai Super Kings in Hyderabad and Punjab against Kolkata Knight Riders away, before facing Rajasthan Royals at home.