Lucknow Super Giants’ Playoff Hopes Dim as Delhi Capitals Clinch 19 Runs Victory
Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) playoff hopes dim Delhi Capitals closed their league stage on a high note with a 19-run victory.
In order for either side to place in the top four, other outcomes must go their way.
Lucknow Super Giants 189 for 9 (Pooran 61, Arshad 58*, Ishant 3-34) were defeated by Delhi Capitals 208 for 4 (Porel 58, Stubbs 57, Naveen-ul-Haq 2-51) by 19 runs.
With a 19-run victory over Lucknow Super Giants in Delhi, the Delhi Capitals concluded the league season and, if only theoretically, maintained their position in the top four. With one game remaining against the Mumbai Indians, LSG is still in the running as well. However, if either team wants to finish in the top four, other outcomes must go their way.
With a chase of 209 down to 44 for 4, Nicholas Pooran’s 61 and Arshad Khan’s unbeaten 58 from No. 8 carried LSG to the final over. But Rasikh Salam held on to 22 off the last over to give DC its seventh IPL 2024 triumph.
DC needed to score 200 or more on a high-scoring surface in order to have a chance of winning two points. Abishek Porel and Tristan Stubbs shined with fifty-hits each after being invited to bat, lifting DC to 208 for four. Ishant Sharma destroyed LSG early on with the ball, taking three wickets. Pooran and Arshad did their best, but LSG could not stop losing wickets at the other end and ultimately could not win.
Jake Fraser-McGurk, DC’s aggressive opener, was caught at long-on by left-arm fast Arshad in the first over. However, Shai Hope and Porel didn’t let the wicket stop them. In the second over of Arshad, Porel hit three fours and a six after hitting a six against Mohsin Khan.
Hope struck 4, 4, and 6 against Yudhvir Singh in the next over. After four overs, DC was quickly up to 51 for 1. Naveen-ul-Haq was also spared by the pair as he let up 17 runs in his opening over. Porel batted 43 off 16 as DC finished the powerplay at 73 for 1.
Because LSG’s spinners applied pressure in the middle overs, Porel reached his fifty in just 21 balls, but he managed to score just eight runs off his following 12 balls. Following the powerplay, Rahul brought in Ravi Bishnoi, who bowled Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya from the opposite end.
In the ninth over, Bishnoi ended the 92-run partnership between Porel and Hope at the second wicket. Hope hit a full-length wide delivery straight to cover, and Rahul made an incredible low catch to remove him for a mere 38 off 27 balls. Porel tried to go big with Naveen’s slower ball, but only managed to score 17 off the next 15 balls. In his four overs, Bishnoi finished with 1 for 26, while DC managed just 42 runs from overs 7 to 12.
DC were 136 for 3 after 15 overs, and the 200 mark appeared far off. Still, they had Stubbs. He got off to a fast start, hitting seven off his first nine deliveries. In the sixteenth over, he hit two fours and a six off Arshad, and in the nineteenth over, he hit two sixes and a four off Naveen to reach fifty in twenty-two balls. With his unbroken 57 off 25 and Rishabh Pant’s explosive 33, DC reached 208 for 4, needing 72 runs from the last five overs.
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The Impact Player, Ishant, made an immediate impression by dismissing three formidable opponents in his first three overs: Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul, and Deepak Hooda. Marcus Stoinis was stumped by Pant and dismissed by Axar Patel, which quickly had LSG down to 44 for 4. Pooran’s powerful hitting kept LSG in the game despite the early setbacks. Shortly after the left-arm spinner removed Stoinis off his opening ball, he hammered Axar for 4, 6, 4, 6. After that over, he hit two more sixes and four more fours, including a reverse sweep over extra cover to hit a six off Kuldeep Yadav.
LSG had a half-time score of 97 for 5. But Pooran was dismissed for a 27-ball 61 as he was caught off guard by Mukesh Kumar’s slower short ball, which angled away from his hitting arc and sliced to Axar at extra cover. It appeared as though LSG had lost control of the pursuit at 101 for 6.
When Arshad emerged with his guns blazing, there was even more entertainment. With five sixes and three fours in his batting stroke at 175.5, the left-hander kept LSG in the match right up to the very finish. His undefeated knock reduced the total to 29 off the previous 12. However, Rasikh and Mukesh denied him additional boundaries in their final two overs, and LSG was 19 runs short of DC’s total.
Rishabh Pant Reflects on Comeback Season: “I Want to Stay on the Field All the Time”
Rishabh Pant expressed his deep sense of gratitude after Delhi Capitals’ last league match in IPL 2024. Playing his first season since a severe accident in December 2022, Pant showcased resilience, emerging as DC’s highest run-scorer with 446 runs in 13 games at a strike rate of 155.40. His performance secured him a spot in India’s squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup.
“Personally, it was fantastic to come back on the field. The support from the entire country was heartening,” Pant shared with broadcasters after DC’s 19-run victory over Lucknow Super Giants. “Everywhere I played, the support was incredible. Being back after one-and-a-half years, I cherish every moment on the ground and never want to stay away.”
Despite facing numerous challenges this season, including key player absences and injuries, Pant remained optimistic. The team’s persistence kept them in playoff contention until their final game.
KL Rahul on LSG’s Struggles: “Powerplay Batting Let Us Down”
KL Rahul, captain of the Lucknow Super Giants, voiced his disappointment following their third consecutive defeat, which dimmed their playoff hopes. Rahul pinpointed their powerplay batting woes as a critical issue.
“This season, our powerplay batting has consistently let us down,” Rahul admitted. “Losing early wickets prevented us from building solid foundations for players like Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran. We needed a strong start to set them up, which we struggled to achieve.”
Reflecting on their recent match against Delhi Capitals, Rahul believed they should have chased down the target of 209 on a batting-friendly pitch. Despite a promising start, LSG couldn’t maintain momentum and ultimately fell short.
