Skipper Rishabh Pant, under scrutiny after two underwhelming performances, will be determined to deliver a match-winning knock in front of the home crowd. LSG’s batting lineup has been explosive, with Nicholas Pooran and Mitchell Marsh stepping up in their last game against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Meanwhile, all-rounder Shardul Thakur impressed with a four-wicket haul, strengthening the team’s bowling attack.
The slow nature of the Ekana pitch means spinners will have a key role to play. LSG have stacked their lineup with three spin options, relying heavily on Ravi Bishnoi. Punjab Kings, on the other hand, will look to their spin spearhead Yuzvendra Chahal to make an impact, with Glenn Maxwell also expected to contribute with the ball.
A major talking point will be the battle between the IPL’s two most expensive players—Pant (Rs 27 crore) and Shreyas Iyer (Rs 26.75 crore). While Pant has struggled so far, Iyer showcased his class with a match-winning 97* off 42 balls against Gujarat Titans. Punjab Kings will take confidence from their skipper’s form and look to exploit any weaknesses in LSG’s lineup.
With both teams boasting firepower in both batting and bowling, fans can expect a thrilling encounter. LSG will be desperate to turn their home ground into a fortress, while PBKS will be keen to build on their early-season form. Can Pant silence his critics with a captain’s knock, or will Iyer continue his dominant run? All eyes will be on Lucknow as these two teams battle for crucial IPL points.
Teams:
Punjab Kings Squad: Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Azmatullah Omarzai, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Suryansh Shedge, Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Harpreet Brar, Nehal Wadhera, Praveen Dubey, Vishnu Vinod, Yash Thakur, Aaron Hardie, Kuldeep Sen, Harnoor Singh, Musheer Khan, Pyla Avinash, Xavier Bartlett, Lockie Ferguson, Josh Inglis
Lucknow Super Giants Squad: Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav, Mitchell Marsh, Manimaran Siddharth, Himmat Singh, Akash Maharaj Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Matthew Breetzke, Aryan Juyal, RS Hangargekar, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Akash Deep, Mayank Yadav, Shamar Joseph, Arshin Kulkarni
