3 problems with LSG that finally caught up to them in the IPL 2023 Eliminator
The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) fell at the Eliminator stage of the Indian Premier League (IPL) playoffs for the second season running, with their latest loss being a completely comprehensive one.
LSG were thrashed by the Mumbai Indians (MI) by 81 runs as they played some amateur cricket involving a host of silly run-outs and tactical gaffes. Krunal Pandya and co. surrendered tamely in Chennai, with the five-time champions showing their big-game pedigree.
Although the Super Giants finished third in the standings at the end of the league stage and seemed primed to make a deeper run into the playoffs this time around, they had certain holes in their side that were bound to pinch them in the side at some point.
Here are three problems LSG faced throughout IPL 2023 that finally caught up to them in the Eliminator.
#3 LSG were too dependent on a few high-profile players
Without KL Rahul, who was ruled out with an injury midway through the tournament, LSG were always going to struggle to make up for his absence. The result was that they were heavily reliant on certain high-profile players to step up regularly.
Ravi Bishnoi simply had to produce wickets in the middle overs after Lucknow lost faith in Amit Mishra, with Krunal and Krishnappa Gowtham not being reliable spin options. Nicholas Pooran needed to go all guns blazing from the word go, while Marcus Stoinis' runs propped up the batting lineup before the West Indian.
Barely any batters barring Stoinis and Pooran stepped up. Deepak Hooda, Manan Vohra, Karan Sharma and Krunal were all failures, while Prerak Mankad, Kyle Mayers, Quinton de Kock and Ayush Badoni contributed but without much consistency.
In the bowling department, meanwhile, only Bishnoi was able to collect a decent amount of wickets. Yash Thakur, with 13 scalps, was LSG's second-highest wicket-taker in IPL 2023.
#2 The Super Giants' batting order was anything but ideal
Most of LSG's tactical decisions when it came to their batting order didn't work in IPL 2023.
Stoinis was often sent up to counter the spinners, and while he did decently enough, he could've been used lower down the order to even greater effect. Pooran was rarely given a good number of balls to face, and there was always immense pressure on him to smack a few sixes.
Badoni was shunted up and down the order, while Hooda batted in a variety of positions. So did Krunal, who, for some reason, earned moves up the order when Lucknow needed a left-hander in the middle instead of Pooran.
There was barely any stability in the batting order, with most of the players not having clearly defined roles. That wasn't the only place where LSG experimented too much, though...
#1 Lucknow changed their side constantly during IPL 2023
Four players featured in all 15 games for LSG in IPL 2023 - Stoinis, Pooran, Krunal and Bishnoi. Apart from the quartet, Mayers played a reasonable 13 and Hooda an undeserved 12. Both were dropped from the side before being brought back for the Eliminator, where they couldn't fire.
Apart from them, no player reached double digits when it came to appearances made in the competition. As many as eight players took part in five or fewer matches in IPL 2023, leaving Lucknow without any continuity in their playing XI.
LSG also switched up their usage of the impact player, with several alterations in their combination depending upon the conditions. Often, their decisions weren't exactly tailored to the venues they encountered.
The Super Giants' lack of clarity regarding their ideal side was evident in the Eliminator, where they switched things up a bit to no avail. Had they identified their best 12 players and stuck with them throughout the competition, they would've been in a much better place by the time the playoffs rolled around.