Lucknow Super Giants are heading into their match against Punjab Kings with two major concerns: inconsistency and captain KL Rahul’s unimpressive strike rate. In their last three games, they lost two, and much of the inconsistency could be attributed to Rahul’s inability to maintain the required run-scoring rate. Despite starting off with a flurry of boundaries and sixes, Rahul suddenly slows down, which has hurt the Super Giants in recent games.
Rahul’s struggle in the middle overs is also making it harder for Super Giants’ power-hitters, Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran. Although Rahul is a more capable batter than what his current numbers suggest, he needs to keep going, particularly since his opening partner Kyle Mayers has been playing strokes regularly during the Powerplay overs.
However, despite losing two of their last three games, the Super Giants are still in the top four on the points table. If Rahul can be in better control with the bat, they will certainly be in a better position. On the bowling front, the Super Giants don’t have much to worry about as their quicks and spinners have been putting up a decent job.
Punjab Kings, on the other hand, have reasons to feel confident about their bowling, given how consistently left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh has been performing. In their last game, the Punjab Kings bowlers did well to hit the right areas in the slog overs, which helped them defend 214/8 and beat Mumbai Indians by 13 runs.
However, there are concerns about the fitness of regular captain Shikhar Dhawan, who has been out with a shoulder niggle. In Dhawan’s absence, his team has lacked firepower at the top, with only Prabhsimran Singh able to take the attack to the opposition. Stand-in captain Sam Curran has tried his best with both bat and ball.
Today’s match will be between Punjab Kings and Lucknow Super Giants at the PCA Stadium in Mohali. The match will be live on Star Sports & Jio Cinema at 7:30 pm.
IPL 2023 KL Rahul Lucknow Super Giants Mohali Punjab Kings
Last modified: April 28, 2023
