A Royal Challenge arrives at the home of the Super Giants in a renewed rivalry of IPL 2023

As the Royal Challengers Bangalore return to the field, this time standing in their way will be the formidable Lucknow Super Giants who are stationed in the second position of the points table with 10 points from the eight games that they have played so far. RCB are currently placed in sixth position of the points table with eight points from eight games and would be hoping to avenge their earlier defeat against the Super Giants, one which ended in a last-ball thriller.

RCB will be coming to this fixture on the back of a defeat as they slumped down to KKR after failing to scale the desired heights. Chasing 200, their batters couldn’t really get off the block except for Virat Kohli and Mahipal Lomror as they knitted together knocks of 54 (37) and 34 (18) respectively. Wanindu Hasaranga shone with figures of 2/24.

LSG will be coming afresh into this contest on the back of a bumper win as they ran roughshod over the Punjab Kings, piling 257 on the scorecard, courtesy of blitzes from Marcus Stoinis (72), Kyle Mayers (54) and Nicholas Pooran (45). Yash Thakur emerged as an unlikely hero with the ball for LSG as he crippled Punjab’s formidable batting unit, bagging four crucial scalps while Naveen-ul-Haq played the perfect two to tango with a spell of 3/30.

The last time these two faced off, RCB’s top three were in shining form, laying waste to the LSG bowlers. However, while defending the total, things went horribly south and albeit a golden opportunity to probably tie the game, Harshal Patel missed a Mankad at the non-striker’s end while Dinesh Karthik’s fumble behind the stumps allowed LSG to sneak a bye and secure a thrilling win.

Venue Watch

Ekana Sports City has a balanced track and the kind of assistance on offer for the bowlers is slightly higher vis-à-vis the other surfaces that have been up for grabs in the ongoing edition of the tournament. With a star-studded batting lineup at both ends, expect the tussle between these two juggernauts to produce another 400-plus total.

Personal battles to watch out for:

Faf du Plessis vs Naveen-ul-Haq

Well in the race for the Orange Cap, Faf du Plessis will once again be RCB’s primary bet to get the runs rolling in early. With 422 runs at an average of 60.28, the hard-hitting South African opener will be spearheading the Royal charge. Naveen-ul-Haq has been burning bright in the last couple of games with four wickets from the same and his eye for that regimented discipline is what makes him a decent pick against the hard-hitting South African opener.

Virat Kohli vs Ravi Bishnoi 

Currently fifth in the run-scoring chart, Virat Kohli has amassed 333 runs at an average of 47.57 and a strike rate of 142.30. A half-century in the preceding game will make him the pennant-bearer of RCB’s fighting spirit against a mysterious Ravi Bishnoi. The LSG spinner has been slightly expensive in the ongoing edition but his ability to fox batsmen coupled with Kohli’s discomfort against leg spin can make this a fascinating match-up between the two.

Mohammed Siraj vs KL Rahul

RCB’s ace quick Mohammed Siraj has been in exemplary form throughout the tournament and has enjoyed a purple patch of his own with 14 wickets from eight games at a magical economy rate of 7.28. He has been pretty consistent throughout the latest edition of the tournament and being in the midst of wickets with scalps of Jos Buttler and Andre Russell in the recent past, he would be buoyed by confidence. KL Rahul has been drifting in and out of form but his current tally of 274 runs at an average of 34.25 will make him the key for LSG to score big in today’s game.

Match detail:

Lucknow Super Giants vs Royal Challengers Bangalore

Venue: Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow

Date: 1st May, 2023

Time: 7:30 PM

Head-to-head:

Matches played: 3

LSG: 1

RCB: 2

Squads:

Lucknow Super Giants:

KL Rahul (C & wk), Quinton de Kock (wk), Nicholas Pooran (wk), Manan Vohra, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Daniel Sams, Krunal Pandya, Krishnappa Gowtham, Karan Sharma, Prerak Mankad, Amit Mishra, Mark Wood, Jaydev Unadkat, Romario Shepherd, Naveen-ul-Haq, Avesh Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, Yudhvir Singh, Yash Thakur, Mayank Yadav, Swapnil Singh.

Royal Challengers Bangalore:

Faf Du Plessis (C), Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammad Siraj, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Shahbaz Ahmed, Anuj Rawat, Akash Deep, Josh Hazlewood, Mahipal Lomror, Finn Allen, Suyash Prabhudessai, Karn Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, David Willey, Wayne Parnell, Himanshu Sharma, Manoj Bhandage, Rajan Kumar, Avinash Singh, Sonu Yadav, Michael Bracewell, Vyshak Vijaykumar