Courtesy: LSG/BCCI/IPL
Pacer Mayank Yadav has joined Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match against Rajasthan Royals (RR) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on April 19. The speedster hasn’t played competitive cricket for more than six months due to his back and toe injuries. Following India’s T20 International (T20I) match against Bangladesh in Hyderabad on October 12, Mayank faced discomfort in his back. However, the youngster has now recovered after going through rehabilitation at the BCCI’s National Cricket Academy (NCA) in Bengaluru. Lucknow announced the 22-year-old’s comeback with a video on X with the caption, "Mayank Yadav is back." In the clip, the bowler can be seen entering a hotel where his LSG teammates are residing.
His addition will bolster LSG’s fast-bowling unit, which has been led by Shardul Thakur with the assistance of Avesh Khan and Akash Deep thus far. Mayank grabbed a lot of eyeballs in IPL 2024 for his magnificent pace bowling. During the tournament, he also touched 156.7 km/h, which became the fastest delivery in the history of IPL. He was later ruled out from the competition due to a side strain, after picking up seven wickets in four outings. In October 2024, Mayank also made his international debut with a T20I against Bangladesh in Gwalior.
Watch the video here:
Mayank likely to feature in LSG’s playing XI against RR
Mayank is likely to be a part of LSG’s playing XI in the encounter against Rajasthan to be held on April 19. He will be expected to provide support to Shardul, who has been in brilliant touch with the ball this season. With 11 wickets in seven matches, Thakur is the highest wicket-taker for Lucknow in the competition.
Lucknow will be playing against RR after beating the table-toppers Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Ekana Cricket Stadium. On the other hand, Rajasthan faced a crushing defeat at the hands of RCB by nine wickets while playing their first game of the season in Jaipur. Before hosting Lucknow, Rajasthan will have to clash against Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on April 16.
