With Nicholas Pooran in red-hot form, Lucknow Super Giants are looking like a settled unit. LSG has shown that they are a team to beat this year, whether home or away. They won both of their games at Ekana Stadium Lucknow, and a win at M Chinnaswamy propelled them to joint table toppers this year.
For Punjab Kings, Livingstone is still in doubt. Dhawan clarified on the matter that he has pulled a muscle. With two back-to-back losses, they must be itching to get back to winning ways. Sikhar has been brilliant for them but other have not performed to their potential. On the bowling front, Arshdeep and Sam Curran are doing the heavy lifting. Others need to show up as well.
With the red soil pitch for this match, we can expect plenty of runs in Lucknow. But the fast bowlers should also get something out of this as Mark Wood showed in the previous two instances. Rabada could be effective for the Kings as they take on the task of handing LSG their first defeat at Ekana Stadium.
It will be warm and cloudy in the evening, so, the dew might not be a factor here. With this in mind, Both teams should be looking to chase in this match.
In this game, Mayers may make way for Quinton de Kock, as the former has not been able to replicate his success at the top for the last couple of matches. Other than this, they are a settled unit.
Probable XI: KL Rahul(c), Quinton de Kock, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya, Nicholas Pooran(w), Jaydev Unadkat, Amit Mishra/Ayush Badoni (Impact Player), Avesh Khan, Mark Wood, Ravi Bishnoi
Liam Livingstone will unlikely be available for this match, he pulled a muscle in the practice session. They may also want to rotate their fast bowlers, if so, Rabada might make way for Nathan Ellis.
Probable XI: Prabhsimran Singh, Shikhar Dhawan(c), Matthew Short, Bhanuka Rajapaksa/Rahul Chahar (Impact Player), Jitesh Sharma(w), Sam Curran, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Kagiso Rabada/Nathan Ellis, Rishi Dhawan, Arshdeep Singh
Match Time: LSG vs PBKS, Match 21, IPL 2023 at 7:30pm IST
Venue: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
Punjab Kings Squad: Prabhsimran Singh, Shikhar Dhawan(c), Matthew Short, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma(w), Sam Curran, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh, Rahul Chahar, Sikandar Raza, Harpreet Singh Bhatia, Atharva Taide, Gurnoor Brar, Baltej Singh, Liam Livingstone, Vidhwath Kaverappa, Nathan Ellis, Mohit Rathee, Shivam SinghLucknow Super Giants Squad: Kyle Mayers, KL Rahul(c), Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya, Nicholas Pooran(w), Jaydev Unadkat, Mark Wood, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Amit Mishra, Ayush Badoni, Daniel Sams, Prerak Mankad, Swapnil Singh, Krishnappa Gowtham, Manan Vohra, Quinton de Kock, Naveen-ul-Haq, Yash Thakur, Romario Shepherd, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Karan Sharma, Mayank Yadav
