IPL 2024: Lucknow Super Giants maintain composure to secure narrow victory over Mumbai Indians
Lucknow Super Giants display resilience and skill as they secure a thrilling victory over Mumbai Indians in a high-stakes IPL encounter, with Marcus Stoinis and KL Rahul leading the charge.
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FollowLucknow Super Giants (LSG) once again showcased their mettle at home, clinching a nerve-wracking four-wicket triumph over Mumbai Indians in a thrilling encounter. Credit goes to the all-round performance of their bowlers and an invaluable half-century by Marcus Stoinis.
Chasing a target of 145 runs, LSG faced an early setback with the dismissal of Arshin Kulkarni for a golden duck in his maiden IPL appearance. However, skipper KL Rahul and Stoinis steadied the ship with a crucial partnership, keeping LSG on course. While Rahul contributed 28 runs before falling to Pandya, Stoinis combined with Deepak Hooda to maintain momentum. Despite a few late wickets, Nicholas Pooran's composure in the final over ensured victory for LSG.
Earlier, opting to field, LSG's bowlers made an impact with the new ball. Mohsin Khan and Stoinis struck early to remove Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav, leaving Mumbai Indians reeling at 28/4 by the end of the powerplay. Although Ishan Kishan and Nehal Wadhera stabilized MI's innings with a fifty-plus partnership, LSG bowlers continued to apply pressure. Kishan's scratchy 32 off 36 balls was followed by Wadhera's brief flourish before Mohsin's impressive yorker dismantled the set batter. Despite Tim David's late cameo, MI could only manage 144/7.
LSG's top-notch bowling performance, coupled with a determined batting effort, ensured a thrilling victory with four balls to spare, further dampening Mumbai Indians' chances of making it to the final four.
KL Rahul in the post-match chat: "We still had batters in the middle. An experienced batter in Pooran and KP is seasoned as well. Was a bit dry. 165-170 would have made it a competitive game. It takes time to adjust to this wicket. Our bowlers did well and put pressure on them. Always happy when you get those two points. We need to gain momentum in the back end of the tournament and the momentum helps. I haven't spoken to Mayank much. He had some pain in his sides. He said thoda dukh raha hai. So, I asked him to go out. He is useful for us. We need to take care of him. He bowled wide yorkers and slower bumpers today which was good to see. We are giving him a free hand."
Justin Langer - LSG head coach: "That's a smile, we were bitterly disappointed with our last game. So to be able to fightback against Mumbai Indians and get the points, that's certainly a smile. What I am learning in this competition is every game is hard and every game is vital. So to get the points, we are thrilled with that. (Bowling performance) It was outstanding, I thought we had all bases covered. You are always looking to take wickets in the powerplay. When you do that, you are always ahead of the game. It's the first time, besides Bangalore early in the tournament, we took those early wickets and that set us up nicely. (On Mayank Yadav) Looks like he's sore in the same spot, his rehab's been absolutely perfect, he bowled pain-free in the last few week or so, he's looked in great condition. We'll have a scan and we'll find out tomorrow. (On Marcus Stoinis) He's been a real match-winner. Took a good catch early as well. He's just showing us that presence at the top of the order which we probably demanded after the first 4 or 5 games. He's showing that real presence, he's playing well, he's being a match-winner. In T20 cricket, in IPL cricket, in big tournaments, match-winners are crucial if you are going to keep progressing. It's such a tight tournament, I have been blown away by how brilliant this IPL tournament is. It's a bit like a World Cup. There's no easy games, every point is crucial. We see how tight it is on the table. For us to take those points tonight, really valuable. Most importantly, after our disappointing last loss, I loved how we fought back and that's a sign of a really good team."
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