Khan, Rahul make LSG part of top 2

The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) defeated the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the forty-fifth game of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL). The match was played in the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Mohsin Khan was adjudged to be the Man of the Match.

Rahul and Hooda make impression

Rishabh Pant used five different bowlers in the opening five overs, but Quinton de Kock remained unaffected for the most part, smashing Chetan Sakariya. In the fifth over, Shardul Thakur had him caught at point, bringing Deepak Hooda in to bat beside a calm Kananur Lokesh Rahul.

Hooda got off to a fast start, hitting four of his first five boundaries to Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav through the covers. In the meantime, Rahul got to 27 in 24 balls before hammering Yadav and the seamers in the following 11 deliveries to achieve his fifty in 35 deliveries. In the 14th over, Hooda, too, sped to a 32-ball fifty. Hooda moved around in his crease, but his shots were hardly daring, as he only hit six fours and one six.

Rahul, on the other hand, accelerated following his fifty. Rahul smashed two more sixes off the seamers after Hooda fell to Thakur shortly after his half-century. Marcus Stoinis, the No. 4, was struggling to establish fluency, so he wasn't getting any help from the other end. Rahul was the third Thakur wicket to fall in the 19th over, and Stoinis' final-over six sent the Super Giants into the 190s.

Chase gets off to shaky start

David Warner and Prithvi Shaw both fell victim to the seamers early in their innings, mistiming a length and a short delivery, respectively. In the second over, Shaw was the first to fall, top-edging a draw from the towering Dushmantha Chameera to midwicket, while Warner mis-hit a pull from Mohsin Khan to midwicket.

Marsh and Pant were sent in early as a result of this, and instead of rebuilding, they counterattacked. Pant hit three fours and a six off Krunal Pandya's fourth over, and Jason Holder's fifth over produced two sixes and a four. Chameera was hit for two fours and a six to close the powerplay, and the duo had combined for 53 runs between overs four and six to finish on 66 for 2 following the powerplay.

Then there was the phantom wicket. Marsh, who was on 37 and looking imperious against both spin and pace, attempted to punch a sloppy Krishnappa Gowtham delivery but failed. Marsh walked back after the umpire called him out for being caught behind. However, replays revealed that no spike occurred when the ball passed the bat, and there was no way to determine what generated the sound in real time. The Capitals were 73 for 3 after 7.1 overs after the dismissal, which happened against the run of play.

Khan is one who causes problems

After Lalit Yadav fell for three, it was still game on with Pant around and Rovman Powell having already produced a match-winning performance from the middle order.

The fielders for the Super Giants, including skipper Rahul, dropped regulation catches and slipped up in the field, and Pant and Powell took advantage of the unforced errors to form a new combination. Powell punished Gowtham for 6, 6, 4, with six overs remaining and 61 required.

Pant was set up with four length deliveries, including cutters up front, when Khan reappeared. On 44, he went full throttle and had Pant fail to flick from around his pads, resulting in his stumps being flattened. After that, Patel and Powell hit a few boundaries to keep the necessary run rate around 12, but Khan's final over dealt the death blow. Powell pulled a length ball across the field to Krunal Pandya at deep midwicket. Thakur slog swept Khan to the same fielder a few balls later, and with 4 for 14, it appeared like the game was over. However, Kuldeep Yadav and Patel scored 15 runs off Chameera's penultimate over to keep the game alive until the last over.

For the 20th, Rahul went to Stoinis, who hadn't bowled all day, and he got off to a bad start, allowing a six off Yadav's bat. But Stoinis came back with four clean balls to put the equation out of reach, and with 12 needed off one ball, Patel smashed a six that was only a consolation for a side who went one boundary shot short.