[Watch] LSG skipper KL Rahul falls cheaply again in a big run chase
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain KL Rahul endured another forgettable outing with the bat as he scored a snail-paced 18 off 20 balls against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Chasing 213, Rahul never found any momentum and eventually fell in the 12th over, with the required run rate on the rise.
After winning the toss and electing to bowl first, the LSG bowlers found it difficult to get going as Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis put on 96 for the opening wicket. Despite the Super Giants eventually dismissing Kohli for 61, their leather hunt continued as Glenn Maxwell joined skipper Faf du Plessis. The duo put on a partnership of 115 off just 50 balls, taking RCB to 212-2 in their 20 overs.
In reply, LSG got off to a terrible start, losing in-form opener Kyle Mayers for naught in the first over of the innings. They were further damaged when Wayne Parnell dismissed both Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya in the fourth over of the innings to reduce the Super Giants to 23-3.
Marcus Stoinis then took centerstage as he smashed 65 off just 30 balls, but a struggling KL Rahul at the other end meant that the onus was on the Australian to keep going for the big hits, eventually leading to his downfall. The skipper didn't last much longer either as he was dismissed three balls later, caught at deep square leg off Mohammed Siraj's bowling to end another miserable outing with the bat.
Check out this video of KL Rahul's dismissal:
However, Rahul's dismissal may have been a blessing in disguise as Nicholas Pooran joined Ayush Badoni and built a match-winning partnership of 84 off just 35 balls. The lower order added crucial runs as the Super Giants emerged victorious off the last ball of the innings.
"I threw all our weapons we had at them" - RCB captain Faf du Plessis after their heartbreaking defeat to LSG
Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Faf du Plessis was disappointed after his side's narrow defeat against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) despite being in control for much of the game. Defending a massive 212, RCB had LSG reeling at 23-3 inside the powerplay.
However, match-winning contributions from Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran powered LSG to a thrilling one-wicket victory off the last ball of the innings.
Speaking at the post-match presentation, the RCB skipper credited the Lucknow batters. He said:
"Disappointed. I mean obviously they played really well through the middle there but I thought we fought back beautifully. But then that last ball, I fancied our chances with a run-out. I threw all our weapons we had at them. Unfortunately they took on one of our stronger bowlers right away, Harshal in his first two overs, but he came back well. "
Speaking about his batting earlier in the match, Du Plessis felt he struggled for most of his innings before the final few overs. He said:
"I was actually struggling for most of my innings. Was just happy to give the strike to Virat who was striking it really well in the first six overs. You get those innings where sometimes you have to scratch through and once I started hitting a few I got my flow."
RCB have now lost back-to-back games after winning their season opener and LSG have won three of their first four matches.
RCB will remain at home and take on the Delhi Capitals (DC) on Saturday, April 15, while LSG will return home to take on the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the second match of the same day.