IPL 2024: Lucknow Super Giants vs Gujarat Titans, 21st Match - Who Said What?

Lucknow Super Giants defeated Gujarat Titans for the first time in their short history. Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran delivered with the bat and in the second innings, Yash Thakur picked up a brilliant five-for to help Lucknow win the match by 33 runs. Notably, the hosts didn’t have a great start to the match as Quinton de Kock departed in the first over of the match while skipper KL Rahul and Devdutt Padikkal struggled to get going for the majority part of the time.

However, Stoinis rescued them with a brilliant half-century while Pooran smashed 32* runs off 22 deliveries as his brilliant cameo helped Lucknow post 163 runs on the board. Among GT bowlers, Umesh Yadav was sensational in the powerplay as he picked up two wickets while Darshan Nalkande picked up a couple in the middle overs.

When it came to the chase, Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan looked to be in good touch but the skipper couldn’t capitalize on the momentum. He departed for 19 runs while Sai made 31 runs in the middle. Following which, the likes of Kane Williamson, Sharath, Vijay Shankar and Nalkande failed to get going, which ruled GT out of the race. Towards the fag end, Rahul Tewatia tried to do a Rahul Tewatia but couldn't take the team home this time around. LSG's Yash Thakur was incredible with the ball, as he picked up a brilliant five-for to derail GT's momentum.

Also Read - Who is Yash Thakur?

1. Strike rate remains an issue for KL Rahul

Ahead of IPL 2024, KL Rahul stated that he will try his best to get into India’s squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup. With Yashasvi Jaiswal out of form, Rahul had a brilliant opportunity to put up a strong case but his strike rate remains a major issue. Against GT, the LSG skipper made 33 runs off 31 deliveries, at a strike rate of 106.45, which is concerning, to say the least.

2. Brute force of Stoinis and Pooran

Following a shaky start, there was pressure on Stoinis, especially when Rahul was struggling as well. The Australia international kept his calm and played to the situation, before accelerating. He made 58 runs off 43 deliveries in the end, which played a massive part in them in posting a winnable total. Credit also goes out to Pooran, who smashed towards the end. He has been in incredible form this year, which is a positive sign for the franchise.

3. Yash Thakur’s five-for 

Mayank Yadav’s injury could have bothered the LSG camp but Yash Thakur rose up to the occasion and produced a masterclass. He picked up key wickets of Shubman Gill, Vijay Shankar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmed and courtesy of his brilliant spell, LSG picked up a comfortable victory. In the absence of Mayank, he has been a massive positive for the side. On the other hand, spinners Krunal Pandya and Ravi Bishnoi were incredible as well, as they shared four wickets.

Also Read - Watch: Ravi Bishnoi's incredible catch to dismiss Kane Williamson

Losing skipper Shubman Gill said:

It was a good wicket to bat on, a poor batting performance by us. We got a decent start, but we lost wickets in the middle and couldn't recover from that. Our bowlers were exceptional as they restricted them to 160-odd, just that our batters let us down. (On missing David Miller) Miller is a kind of a player who can change a game in a couple of overs, because I think this total was very gettable for us. (On his dismissal) I thought it was the last over of the powerplay and I just wanted to make the most of it, just that I missed that ball as I tried to play a bit too square. It was tremendous to watch our bowlers bowl, we were looking forward to restricting them around 160-165.

Winning skipper KL Rahul said:

We'll take the win, I am not going to make too much out of it. For the young bowling unit we have, it helps when we bat first. They get an idea how the wicket is playing and they've also been adapting really well. It's a good record to have (defending all 160+ totals), but it's also where we've played. Having the home advantage helps. The bowlers have come through the ranks over the last couple of years. you have seen the same guys bowling in the last season as well., They have adjusted to their roles. Hopefully we can continue this. We knew that it wasn't as good as the wicket we played on (in the previous match here), also losing two wickets in the powerplay will set us back a bit. Unless someone carries on to get 70-80, it was tough to achieve that 170-180. We just wanted to bat and see how much we can get. That's the advantage you have when you are batting first. All three spinners have been key for us. Sid coming in this season has done really well, he plays a crucial part with the new ball, he's shown great temperament. His job is to restrict the batters. KP is very experienced, he's played IPL for so many seasons. Bishnoi has been around for so many years and keeps getting better. Feels good to get off the mark there (first win vs GT).

POTM Yash Thakur said:

Happy with this five-wicket haul and Man of the Match. I had planned against Gill, I stuck to my plan, KL Rahul had advised me to do so and it paid off. Unfortunately Mayank Yadav got injured, so KL said it was my day and asked me to make the most of it. We are winning the first game against GT in IPL history, very happy with it. Really enjoyed Gill's wicket, the most memorable of all.