After back-to-back wins, Rishabh Pant’s Lucknow Super Giants face Gujarat Titans in a high-stakes IPL clash at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium here on Sunday. It is a chance to build on recent momentum and make amends for losing the opening game against Delhi Capitals at home.
After the shaky start, LSG have bounced back with gritty wins on the road, chasing down totals in tough games. Batting coach Lance Klusener emphasised this resilience: “It’s excellent, wins always help team spirit, and in the dressing room. It’s been nice to get over the line in a couple of tough games.”
The Ekana pitch’s two-paced nature and low bounce challenged LSG’s top order in the first game, restricting them to a below-par total. Klusener remains optimistic. “We didn’t get off to the greatest of starts, but it’s been a good couple of days on the road and we’re coming back with quite a bit of confidence, belief and trust in ourselves.”
Expect captains Rishabh Pant and Shubman Gill to prioritise batting flexibility with spinners likely to dominate the middle overs. Being an afternoon match, the teams would like to bowl first as the mixed soil pitch offers bounce and pace.
LSG’s bowling unit has been the standout, after last season’s inconsistencies. Klusener said: “We’ve got over the line chasing, but the bowling unit has been absolutely outstanding. If there is something that you could possibly put your finger on from last year, it’s been the way that the boys have bowled as a group.”
So far, pace duo Mohammed Shami and Avesh Khan have rattled openers while M Siddharth and Digvesh Rathi have choked the runs. Pacer Prince Yadav’s variations add depth as well and the bowling group has the potential to trouble GT openers Gill and Sai Sudharsan.
Batting-wise, LSG’s middle order has delivered under pressure. Rishabh Pant’s cameos and Mukul Choudhary’s explosive batting in the last game have been vital, with Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh labelled “sleeping giants” by Klusener.
“Rishabh was outstanding, Badoni too… But I think Nicky P and Aiden to a degree, and Mitch are sleeping giants. They’re going to wake up at the right time. It’s a long competition, so we’ll get them going.”
GT, besides Gill and Sudharsan, Jos Buttler and Washington Sundar too are in form. The bowling led by Mohammed Siraj and Prasidh Krishna has pace but the latter in particular has struggled with his lengths.
A win would add momentum to LSG’s playoff hopes after finishing seventh in the previous two seasons. “We’re looking to put on a good performance at home, especially for the fans that come out and support us,” Klusener said. It could be a tactical battle between the IPL 2023 finalists.
GT assistant coach Vijay Dahiya praised Mukul Choudhary’s batting blitz against KKR in the last game, but said: “We have plans to tackle a batter like Mukul. In fact, we’ve planned strategies for every batter of LSG,” he said.
Dahiya said: “A thrilling one-run win in the last game against DC was a big boost and we would like to continue our winning streak. Having a skipper like Subhman is great for the side. He is a brilliant student of the game and that’s what you want to see.”
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