Thakur, Krunal set up convincing win for Lucknow Super Giants

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) defended 163 successfully with Yash Thakur (5-30) and Krunal Pandya (3-11) doing a stellar job in the defence on a sticky surface. It put LSG in the third spot on the points table as they notched up their third win on the trot, and their first-ever against Gujarat Titans.

On a two-paced pitch, LSG lost two crucial top-order wickets inside the powerplay which set them back for the rest of the innings after winning the toss. Umesh Yadav had a good powerplay where he first had Quinton de Kock caught in the deep and then had a close call against Devdutt Padikkal turned down. But that disappointment didn’t last long as he had Padikkal edging one angling across and caught at slip by Vijay Shankar. At 18/2, LSG had to brace themselves for further challenges.

With the pitch also acting up, not allowing for free-flowing stroke-making, LSG were content in building a partnership in a more conventional route. Both KL Rahul and Marcus Stoinis preferred to play through the middle overs with caution predominantly and turning the strike over became the norm. The duo put on 73 runs in 62 balls and attempted to give LSG a launchpad to blast off from. But that turned into a hiccup as Rahul first fell while trying to force the pace and skying a catch to long on off Darshan Nalkande. The pacer struck again in his next over getting the other set batter, Stoinis who had gone past his fifty, and pegged LSG further behind.

LSG entered the final overs with a desperate need to finish well. And they had the right man in for it with Nicholas Pooran working his way in. LSG managed 49 runs in the last five overs of the innings and it was thanks to Pooran mainly as he finished with a 22-ball 32 including three sixes. It ensured that LSG went well past 150 and a total to play with on a tricky surface.

The powerplay couldn’t have gone better for the visitors with Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill racking up 54 inside the first six overs. The duo also dismantled pace sensation Mayank Yadav, hitting him for three boundaries in an over before the speedster walked off the field with what is presumably an injury concern. Sudharsan in particular took on the role of the enforcer quite adeptly in the absence of Wriddhiman Saha who had been ruled out due to an injury. What started like a dream quickly went pear-shaped for the Titans after the powerplay.

With Gill being bowled by Yash Thakur off the last ball of the powerplay, it allowed for an opening for the Super Giants. Krunal Pandya and Ravi Bishnoi combined to dismantle the Titans with regular strikes through the middle overs. Bishnoi first took a superb return catch to dismiss Kane Williamson who had come in as the impact sub. Pandya struck twice in the next over getting Sudharsan mistiming a big hit to deep midwicket and then having BR Sharath caught off an attempted sweep. In his final over, Pandya got Darshan Nalkande caught at short fine to finish with fantastic figures of 3-11 in his four overs.

While Gujarat still remained in the chase ever so slightly while banking on their lower middle-order to do a better job, it was not to be with Yash Thakur delivering a double-wicket maiden. The pacer had Vijay Shankar edging a cut before Rashid Khan toe-ended a big hit to mid off. While Rahul Tewatia glimmered with a quickfire 30, Thakur came back to strike twice more and pick up the first five-wicket haul of IPL 2024 and giving LSG their third win in four games this season.

Gujarat travel to Jaipur to take on the unbeaten Rajasthan Royals on April 10 while Lucknow have a four-day gap before they bost Delhi Capitals on April 12