Toby Marshall
Lucknow Super Giants secured a remarkable win against the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL on Saturday, chasing down 183 runs with seven wickets in hand and four balls to spare. Nicholas Pooran played a stunning knock, scoring 44 off just 13 deliveries at a strike-rate of 338.
Moreover, Prerak Mankad played an unbeaten innings of 64 runs off 45 deliveries, while Marcus Stoinis added 40 runs to the team’s total. Lucknow had a slow start, but they took control of the game in the 16th over, smashing part-time spinner Abhishek Sharma for five sixes and scoring 31 runs off it.
Sunrisers Hyderabad had earlier set a target of 182, with Heinrich Klaasen and Abdul Samad playing impressive innings. Klaasen scored 47 runs before being dismissed while attempting a big hit, while Samad remained unbeaten on 37 off 25 balls. LSG’s Krunal Pandya was the standout bowler, claiming two wickets and conceding just 24 runs in his full quota of four overs.
After Quinton de Kock’s well-made 29 off 19, Stoinis joined Mankad at the crease as the SRH bowlers dominated. Stoinis took some time to get going, but Mankad played cautiously to avoid a cheap dismissal. In the 16th over bowled by Abhishek Sharma, Stoinis finally found his rhythm and hit two huge sixes before being caught in the deep.
However, this provided the platform for Nicholas Pooran to come in and finish strong. The required run rate was nearly 14 at the start of the 16th over, but the 31-run over, which included five sixes, a wide and a wicket, brought it down to below 10. Both Pooran and Mankad continued to hit sixes and LSG secured two crucial points to stay ahead in the race for playoffs.
Sunrisers Hyderabad made a good start with the bat, as Anmolpreet Singh scored boundaries at regular intervals after Abhishek Sharma’s departure. Rahul Tripathi, who has been struggling, also contributed with a crucial cameo. Despite getting dismissed in the last over of the powerplay, SRH managed to score 56 runs.
They scored 39 runs in the next four overs and reached 95 at the halfway mark. Anmolpreet was dismissed by Amit Mishra, but Heinrich Klaasen showed positive intent and hit his first ball for a boundary. However, Krunal Pandya’s two wickets changed the game, and SRH was forced to rebuild.
At 117/5, Abdul Samad smashed a six off his fifth ball, and Klaasen hit back-to-back sixes off Mishra’s bowling. Despite LSG slowing down the run rate in the final three overs, Samad’s two sixes helped SRH cross the 180-run mark. The total seemed challenging to chase with the pitch providing assistance to the bowlers.
The preparations for the much-awaited 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League have kickstarted with a bang. Just like the previous year, the tournament will feature a total of ten teams including Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Gujarat Titans, Lucknow Super Giants, Rajasthan Royals, Delhi Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Punjab Kings, and Kolkata Knight Riders.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) concluded the mini-auction for the 2023 edition of the Indian Premier League on December 23, Friday in Kochi. It was a thrilling affair, as all ten franchises fought tooth and nail to get their desired players in their squad. There were a lot of rags from riches stories as well as the team owners did not shy away from spending a truckload of money on the…
