PBKS vs LSG Highlights IPL 2022: Bowlers shine as Lucknow Super Giants eat Punjab Kings by 20 runs

“It was a difficult pitch (against CSK), but we played according to the wicket and it's good to see the winning result. (When dropped from the playing XI) I just kept on working on my practices because there's nothing much I could do. When Jonny returned to the side, it was obviously for the team balance. I just kept on training. I am just enjoying the game at the moment. They (LSG) have a very good combined XI, so we just want to go out there and have fun out there. 

“The uniqueness of this pitch for me is about the lengths. Not so much fuller, it's about bowling length and it's about bowling bouncers and getting people out with the short ones. You can see why the players want to bowl short, because of this beautiful, even covering of grass. Guys with pace and energy love it here. 29 wickets to the short ones and 20 off length, suggests enough little bit of extra bounce here in Pune.”

Speaking to Star Sports ahead of the game, Harbhajan Singh feels LSG have it in them to go all the way to the playoffs given KL Rahul's form while Piyush Chawla feels that while Mayank needs to step up as a batter, the team looks balanced in this season.

"Lucknow Super Giants have been playing really well. KL Rahul got another hundred. He's incredibly good. He's so consistent. For a top-order batsman to be as consistent as he has been.. I think he has lasted four or five years right at the top. t is really difficult in T20 cricket to be so consistent. He's got such a great recipe for what he does. It seems really low-risk batting but he is scoring big runs, at a strike rate of 140, which is just freakish." - on The Grade Cricketer podcast.

The left-arm pacer's ice-cool approach in the death overs have left many veteran cricketers impressed including Ian Bishop, Daniel Vettori and former India head coach Ravi Shastri who have all backed him for a place in India's T20 World Cup squad.  

It worked perfectly well for the team against Chennai in the last game and hence Mayank will stick to the same XI. 

The only likely one is the return of Avesh Khan who had missed the Mumbai Indians game owing to a "small niggle". If he returns, Mohsin Khan will have to sit out.

The uncapped left-arm pacer, who was retained by PBKS, has managed only three wickets at eight runs per over in eight innings, but the 23-year-old has won all the praises from veteran cricketers owing to his death-over heroics in IPL 2022. In nine overs during the phase, he has conceded at just 7.33 for a wicket. He has been the most economical pacer in the death ov er (min 30 balls) this season and fourth overall after Narine, Rashid, and Chahal.

Pacers have picked 62 wickets in 14 innings this season at 25.08 with an economy rate of 8.30. Spinners, on the other hand, have picked 20 wickets at 34.80 with an economy rate of 8.04.

In seven games at the venue, teams batting first have won four games and lost three with an average first innings score of 172.

Rahul Chahar has dismissed him once for 36 runs in 35 balls while Kagiso Rabada has managed to concede 23 runs against him in 21 balls for a wicket.

He is presently the second highest run getter in IPL 2022 with 368 runs in eight innings at 61.33 and at a strike rate of 147.79 with two centuries and a fifty.

Sri Lankan international Dushmantha Chameera has so far dismissed the India opener twice in 25 balls in T20s for just 30 runs. Meanwhile, he has struggled against Krunal Pandya as well, scoring only 29 off 26, albeit without a wicket.

Dhawan's unbeaten 88 off 59 helped PBKS win by 11 runs against CSK and hence Punjab might want the senior batter to continue with his role in the match against Lucknow

Punjab changed their approach in the previous game against CSK where they opted a more conservative approach before a calculate innings from Dhawan led them to respectable total. "We don't want to lose too many wickets in a bunch, that was a conscious effort [today], but at the same time not going in a shell and being aggressive," Dhawan said after the game. "We keep that nice balance, play with the presence of mind and smartness, not just play with power-hitting but playing with the fields as well."

In eight games this season, Punjab scored 180 or more five times and thrice were they restricted to a total below 151. They have the third best six per ball ratio, fourth-best scoring rate and and the second-lowest batting average. While the strategy has received mixed reviews from veteran cricketers, PBKS have been left struggling with four wins and as many defeats in eight games to stand seventh in the table.

Punjab Kings Squad: Mayank Agarwal(c), Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jonny Bairstow, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma(w), Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Sandeep Sharma, Arshdeep Singh, Shahrukh Khan, Odean Smith, Vaibhav Arora, Harpreet Brar, Nathan Ellis, Prabhsimran Singh, Benny Howell, Baltej Singh, Writtick Chatterjee, Prerak Mankad, Ishan Porel, Atharva Taide, Ansh Patel, Raj Bawa

Lucknow Super Giants Squad: Quinton de Kock(w), KL Rahul(c), Manish Pandey, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Ayush Badoni, Krunal Pandya, Jason Holder, Dushmantha Chameera, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, Avesh Khan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Manan Vohra, Kyle Mayers, Evin Lewis, Shahbaz Nadeem, Ankit Rajpoot, Andrew Tye, Karan Sharma, Mayank Yadav

Hello and welcome to the Live coverage of match number 42 of IPL 2022 where Punjab Kings will take on Lucknow Super Giants in a middle-table clash to keep their playoff hopes alive. Stay tuned!