For LSG, KL Rahul has been moderate at best. His contributions on top the inning have never really exuded much confidence and even his 39 against RR was thanks to some largesse from the fielders – Rahul was dropped twice on single-figure scores – and never really looked commanding.
Lucknow: When Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) returned from Jaipur after their last match, the overall feeling surely would have been one of relief. It is not often in a T20 match that a team defending just 154 runs emerges winner, that too after the rivals being at 87 for no loss at one stage. While LSG won’t be looking at this horse in the mouth, one can safely assume that Gujarat Titans (GT) may not be half as hospitable when the two sides meet at Lucknow on Saturday in the first match of the weekend double-header. On their part, GT would be wondering how they allowed their last-match rivals to recover from 55/4 to run down the Titans’ score of 177. The rivals, in both cases, were Rajasthan Royals.
However, the two results notwithstanding, with LSG winning and GT losing, somehow it one gets a feeling that it will all boil down to how the two skippers show up for their sides.
For LSG, KL Rahul has been moderate at best. His contributions on top the inning have never really exuded much confidence and even his 39 against RR was thanks to some largesse from the fielders – Rahul was dropped twice on single-figure scores – and never really looked commanding.
By contrast, Hardik Pandya somehow seems to get the best out of his team and it only took some exception hitting from Shimron Hetmyer to ensure that RR won their last contest.
Hardik Pandya scored a rapid 28 with the bat and then sent down his four overs for 1/24.
Even if he didn’t have any stats, Pandya looks like a man who is in control of things, which can’t really be said for Rahul. Somehow, that may well be the difference when the two sides meet.
LSG do find themselves on second spot on the IPL 2023 Points Table with eight points from six matches, while GT are fourth with six points from five games. LSG have three wins from their last five matches, and GT too have similar stats, though the former were winners in their last game.
In terms of individual performances, Nicholas Pooran is definitely the mainstay for LSG. His contribution with the bat is top-rung and he always is in the thick of things behind the stumps. Marcus Stoinis has his say with bat and ball. The are the typical all-round displays which have provided consistence, it not always flair, to LSG.
GT sees Pandya in a similar all-round role, while in Shubman Gill and David Miller, they have some sensational hitting power. Combine this Mohammad Shami and Rashid Khan’s performances with the cricket ball and they look really up there.
Avesh Khan has not done his case any harm at all for LSG, while Stoinis and the young and old of leg-spin, in Ravi Bishnoi and Amit Mishra, have really come to the party.
But somehow, GT’s combinations still look a little more cohesive. All of that may change on Saturday in Lucknow, but Pandya’s chilled pout attitude as opposed to Rahul’s intense body language always creates assumptions that the former is more in command. We will find out soon.