Picture Credit: BCCI/IPL
The Lucknow Super Giants have pulled off another incredible bowling performance to beat Punjab Kings by 20 runs at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. After being put in to bat, LSG had a slow start as they lost wickets at regular intervals. But Quintin de Kock and Deepak Hooda had great performances as they managed to take their total to 153.
Then in the second innings, Lucknow's bowling turned up at a different level as they picked up quick wickets at regular intervals. Newcomer Mohsin Khan was the best bowler as he picked 3 three wickets while giving just 24 runs. Alongside Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Krunal Pandya and Dushmantha Chameera also had great performances.
Changes in the points table
After the 42nd match of the IPL, Lucknow Super Giants are third on the table with twelve points from nine games. They also have a net run rate of +0.408, whereas the Punjab Kings are seventh on the table with eight points from nine games with a net run rate of -0.470.
Today’s Matchup
In Saturday’s doubleheader, the Royal Challengers Bangalore will face the Gujarat Titans for the first time in the history of the IPL. Whereas in the second match of the day Mumbai Indians will look to find their first victory of the season as they take on Rajasthan Royals for the second time this season. In their previous game, RR defeated Mumbai by 23 runs.
What dis the captains say?
Losing team captain Mayank Agarwal expressed his disappointment with the team’s defeat as he said, “I think we just kept losing wickets. We had batsmen who were set and we kept getting out. So many soft dismissals for us. It is disappointing and we have to face the truth. We didn't bat well enough and we were below par with the bat. The new ball was doing a bit, seaming around and there was some bounce, it was a crucial period and after that, it did get better to bat on. We are bowling exceedingly well and doing a lot of right things as a bowling unit. Arshdeep has stepped up, Rahul got wickets and KG being the big guy is always stepping up and getting us important wickets.”
LSG captain KL Rahul praised the team’s incredible bowling effort defending a low score. He said, “I was disappointed and fuming at the end of the first innings. Stupid cricket with the bat. It does happen but we did talk about it at the time-out. We did talk that we can defend 160 as this wasn't a great pitch. The crucial runs at the back end and then the execution with the ball helped us win. We need to get better with the bat. Half-time, when Quinny and Deepak were batting they paced it really really well to get to 60 in 9 overs on a tricky wicket. Had we batted smartly, we could have gotten to 180-190.”
“The way we responded with the ball was phenomenal. Krunal has been brilliant throughout the tournament. This season he has really worked on his bowling. Bowling economically is important but he has been giving us two-three wickets in the middle overs. Bishnoi is an aggressive bowler. We are fine with him going for a few fours and sixes looking to go for wickets. I think we just need to be smarter in reading the game. If we could have not played too many shots we could have done better. We have been good on the field and good with the ball. Just need to keep repeating the good things”, he added.