LSG vs KKR IPL 2022 Highlights: Lucknow Super Giants claim top spot with dominant 75-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders

That’s all the action we have for you today. Thank you so much for joining us for Lucknow Super Giants vs Kolkata Knight Riders game! We will be back tomorrow for the double-header Sunday… Until then, it’s goodbye.

“The attempt was to get Dre Russ out, as he was going well. My aim was going with the hard lengths even if that goes for six. His wicket was the best of the three as he was on top. I look to take it one ball at a time. My dad and the coaches have encouraged me to take wickets and help the team win,” says Avesh.

“Played really well, started well with the bat, except for the run out. Was a tricky wicket. Knew it was going to be slow and sticky. Had to get around 150-160. The way Quinton and Deepak batted, made it look easy. Big hitting from Stoinis and Jason gave the momentum. We started superbly with the ball, put the ball in the right areas, couldn’t have asked for more,” says Rahul.

“Having skill is one thing, but knowing what to do when is important. They’ve been put under pressure a couple of times but they’ve stuck to their strengths and been brave with the ball. That’s all we can ask for.”

“Credit must be given to the bowlers, I thought we held our nerve with the bat to post a 170+ total. The guys said it is not easy and a lot of the guys (bowlers) went into the wicket which paid out well and was the right thing to do. We complement each other well and it is not an individual or a couple of individuals who have stood out for the season,” says Jason Holder.

“They outplayed us in both the departments – batting and bowling. We got off to a bad start in the powerplay and also we leaked a lot of runs the death overs,” says Shreyas Iyer.

Lucknow Super Giants have surpassed Gujarat Titans to claim top spot in the points table. Both have 16 points each but Lucknow are first due to a superior run-rate. A 75-run win is the biggest win of the season when it comes to the margin of runs.

Chasing 177 for the win, Kolkata are bundled out for 101 in the 15th over. Avesh Khan and Jason Holder picked up three wickets each while Mohsin Khan and Chameera inflicted early damage. Ravi Bishnoi also picked up a wicket.

A run-out in the end! Harshit Rana’s wicket seals the win for Lucknow, who take the game by 75 runs!

Two in two! What a wonderful catch from Avesh… and Southee has to depart for a nought.

KKR 99/9

Wickets are tumbling for Kolkata! Holder removes Narine (22) to pluck his second wicket of the night!

KKR 99/8

Top edge… but Stoinis failed to grab onto it! Narine survives against Bishnoi.

KKR 94/7

What a comeback from Avesh after being hit for a six on the first delivery. He removes Russell and Anukul, and Lucknow are three wickets away from a comfortable win. The umpire calls for a time-out… catch your breath!!!

KKR 88/7

Another one bites the dust! Anukul Roy gloves it to keeper Quinton de Kock as Avesh strikes twice in the same over. Kolkata lose their seventh wicket.

KKR 86/7

12.1: Russell is always going to find the fence! He hits it over deep mid-wicket off Avesh Khan’s delivery.

12.2: Russell finally perishes! Such an important wicket for Lucknow. Russell walks back after scoring a 19-ball 45.

KKR 85/6

Narine has got enough of it! He connects is properly against Bishnoi to clear deep mid-wicket. He follows it up with a cracking shot to deep extra cover! 10 runs off two balls.

KKR 79/5

Kolkata lose their fifth! He was targetting the short side against Bishnoi but picked out Krunal Pandya! He walks back after making 6.

KKR 69/5

Nine off Bishnoi’s over… and Russell has hit 35 off 15 deliveries. A few more boundaries on the cards?

A 98m six! Russell smokes Bishnoi for a colossal six over deep mid-wicket! He is in the world of his own. 

KKR 62-4

8.5: Russell is in the mood to deal only in boundaries! He picked up Holder’s slower delivery and whacked it straight down the ground!

8.6: Fortune again favours Andre Russell! Edged and gone to the boundary to vacant third man region. 25 runs off Holder’s over!

KKR 55/4

Consecutive sixes for Dre Russ! The big-hitting West Indian smacks one over mid-wicket but gets lucky on the next delivery. It slips through the fielder’s hands to fall over the fence.

Mohsin Khan is back into the attack and gives away five runs. Russell finds a boundary off a top edge in a failed attempt to pull it away.

KKR 30/4

Two wicket maidens inside the first seven overs… and Russell has come in to join Rinku Singh.

KKR 25/4

Another one! Avesh joins the wicket-takers column as he castles Nitish Rana for two.

Holder cramped Finch for room and extra bounce and pace did the rest. Kolkata have lost top-order in the powerplay itself with the run-rate being under five.

KKR 25/3

Jason Holder is into the attack… and he strikes on the fourth delivery to remove Aaron Finch! Another blow!

KKR 23/3

Finch finds a boundary with just nine deliveries left in the powerplay. The Australian hits Avesh Khan through covers. 

KKR 21-2

What a start! Mohsin and Chameera have been brilliant so far. Shreyas was surprised by the extra bounce and pacer, and he got in an awkward position to pick out Badoni at square leg.

KKR 11-2

Gone!!! Pace does the trick for Chameera, who removes Shreyas for 6! What a start for Lucknow!

First boundary! Shreyas punches it on the backfoot against Chameera towards the cover-point. Four runs!

KKR 11/1

Mohsin is bowling some beauties tonight! He beats Shreyas twice with deliveries shaping away from the Kolkata Knight Riders skipper. A quality left-arm seamer in the making! Just two from the over.

KKR 6/1

Dushmantha Chameera comes into the attack and he concedes just four runs. Finch has to find his run-scoring spree in this game! KKR seem under pressure at this point.

KKR 4/1

Baba Indrajith got a thick top edge towards the square leg and young Badoni made no mistake. Kolkata continue to struggle with their opening combination. Shreyas is the next man in.

KKR 0/0

0.4: Terrific start from Moshin! He’s got e peculiar action and he beats Indrajith with a delivery that shaped away from the keeper-batter.

0.6: Mohsin rewarded on the last delivery! The left-arm seamer removes Indrajith for a duck.

KKR 0/0

Aaron Finch and Baba Indrajith open for Kolkata. Mohsin Khan starts the proceedings with the ball! Let’s start the run-chase!

KKR 0/0

“The wicket is on the slower side. I feel that we have got a good total on the board. I was thinking about batting deep but failed to do so, will try to do it next time. The back of a length delivery is not coming on, both change of pace and straight balls,” says Deepak Hooda.

“Our plan was to bat with intent even when we lose wickets. I want to credit our coaching staff, not only me but all the others.”

Shivam Mavi now holds the unwanted record of bowling the three most expensive overs for KKR in the IPL! Rahul perished early but de Kock and Hooda steadied Lucknow with a 71-run stand for the second wicket. Stoinis was the top performer at the death after the Australian hit 14-ball 28. Jason Holder also chipped in with 13 from 4 deliveries.

Quinton de Kock (50) and Deepak Hooda (41) help Lucknow reach 176/7 in 20 overs. Kolkata need 177 runs to grab two crucial points. 

The keeper runs out Chameera with an underarm throw on the last deliver/ Lucknow Super Giants finish on 176/7 in 20 overs!

Jason Holder’s short stay comes to an end! Southee bowls one with a scrambled seam and the West Indian gets a top-edge towards Rinku Singh.

LSG 170/6

30 runs off Shivam Mavi’s over! After Stoinis’ blitz, new man Holder smacks two sixes to pile further misery on the Indian pacer.

LSG 172/5

Lucky for the bowler! Stoinis fails to get four sixes in a row as he picks out Shreyas Iyer.

LSG 160/5

18.1: Take that! A bit fuller from Mavi and Stoinis picked it up quickly to hit it to the shorter boundary on the leg side. Six runs!

18.2: Full-toss on the pads… and Stoinis dispatches it over mid-wicket! Second maximum. 

18.3: Three sixes in a row! And this has gone even longer! He whacks a slower delivery to deep mid-wicket. Mavi under extreme pressure at the moment.

LSG 160/4

In the air… top-edge but Badoni runs a quick double. Russell was fuming at the fielder’s effort. Nine runs off the over… two more overs to go!

LSG 142/4

Stoinis looks to go down the ground against Shivam Mavi but the ball takes a thick top-edge to fly to the boundary rope. A much-needed boundary at this point. Three more overs to go!

LSG 133-4

Marcus Stoinis has joined Badoni in the middle. Lucknow have managed to score just 26 runs in the last five overs. They need some late fireworks to touch the 170 mark.

LSG 126/4

Kolkata needed someone to contribute in Umesh Yadav’s absence and Russell has passed the test with flying colours! Krunal was struggling to find boundaries and he ended up hitting Russell’s short ball to Aaron Finch at deep point.

LSG 123-4

Russell strikes again! He removes Krunal Pandya (25) as Lucknow lose their fourth wicket.

LSG 122/4

A much-needed four! Krunal plays Tim Southee’s delivery over covers and the ball has got enough speed to run towards the boundary fence.

LSG 116/3

A successful over from Russell! Just six off it and the prized wicket of Hooda, who tried to pull it away but picked out Shreyas Iyer in the mid-wicket region. Seven more overs to go… and the umpire signals for a time-out!

LSG 110/3

Russell strikes in his first over! He removes a set Deepak Hooda on 41.

Hooda and Krunal have now added 31 off 28 deliveries. One of them has to stay till the end. Eight more overs to go… and we have ‘Dre Russ’ bowling his first over of the night. 

LSG 104/2

10 runs off Anukul Roy’s over and Sunil Narine is back into the attack. Kolkata need wickets at this point. Lucknow have ticked the 100 mark!

LSG 100/2

50th IPL six for Deepak Hooda! He clears his front leg against Anukul and whacks it over the long-on boundary.

LSG 97/2

9.1: Harshit Rana is back into the attack and Krunal edges that to the third man boundary, and Andre Russell had no chance. Four runs!

9.3: Width on offer… and Hooda picks up second boundary of the over! He slashes it to backward point.

LSG 89/2

De Kock sent the skipper back in the first over, resulting in Rahul’s exit on nought. He produced some fireworks to hit a brisk fifty before falling prey to Sunil Narine. The onus will be on Hooda and Krunal to steer the team to a competitive total.

Krunal has been brilliant with the ball this season. He will be looking to contribute with the ball as well. He has enough time to get accustomed to the pitch. Nine overs gone.

LSG 79/2

What an over! Narine’s delivery got enough help from the wicket as the ball turned away from de Kock. He was looking to hit it on the off-side but ended up picking Mavi at long-off. Krunal Pandya joins Hooda in the middle.

LSG 76/2

Gone after scoring a fifty! Narine’s delivery gripped on the surface and De Kock hands an easy catch to Shivam Mavi at long-off. Lucknow lose their second wicket.

LSG 73/2

Fifty No. 19 in the IPL for De Kock! He reaches the landmark off just 27 balls. He needs to make this count now.

LSG 73/1

You can’t bowl there against De Kock! Last over of the powerplay and the South African whacks Harshit Rana for two sixes and a four. End of six overs and Lucknow are 66/1, which is the highest score for the team in the powerplay this season… and umpire signals for time-out!

Bit full from Anukul and Hooda punishes him with a four towards extra cover. Pure quality and timing from the Indian. De Kock also fetched a boundary earlier towards deep mid-wicket… it’s the end of fifth over that fetched Lucknow 10 runs.

LSG 49/1

Anukul Roy comes into the attack at a time when Hooda-de Kock pair has been trying to forget the mishap that happened in the first over. The pair has to put up a big partnership after Rahul’s exit.

‘Catch it’ call but it’s gone all the way! Hooda joins the fun with a six over long-on. No fielder could have stopped that shot.

LSG 36/1

17 runs off Southee’s over… and we’ve a bowling change. Sunil Narine replaces Shivam Mavi. The West Indian has been economical so far in the tournament.

LSG 29/1

De Kock frees his arms again. Easy pickings for the South African, who crunches a juicy half-volley to the off-side.

LSG 26/1

Up there in the top tier! De Kock times it to perfection. It came right off the middle of the bat and Southee’s delivery is dispatched for a six over deep square leg.

Take that! Consecutive fours off Deepak Hooda’s bat. Poor from Shivam Mavi to offer width to the batter and Hooda doesn’t miss out on those. He picks up two fours on the off-side.

LSG 12/1

Wonderful piece of fielding from Shreyas Iyer to pick it up quickly and hit the stumps! Rahul walks back after registering a diamond duck. Rahul realised that there was no single after he was more than halfway down. What a start for Kolkata!

LSG 2/1

Gone! What a blow! Skipper Rahul is run-out for a duck.

LSG 2/1

Shot!!! De Kock didn’t time it well but the South African executes a pull to get first runs on the board.

LSG 2/0

KL Rahul, Quinton de Kock open for Lucknow. Southee starts the proceedings with the ball… and he starts with a dot. 

LSG 0/0

The battle between turquoise and purple is all set to get underway! Umpires and players are making their way into the middle. Let’s begin!!!

All eyes on KL Rahul! The LSG skipper will be looking to continue his blistering form with the bat. He is set to open with Quinton de Kock… stay tuned! Live action coming soon.

“We haven’t played too many games here. From whatever we have seen on the TV, it has been sticky and hasn’t been a high scoring venue. But it gives us a good opportunity as a batting unit to come out and put up a competitive total on the board. We have to assess the conditions and put a challenging total on the board.”

“We have one change – Avesh comes in for Gowtham. That’s what gives us confidence and that’s what we want to be as a team, performing as a team and not rely on one or two players. We have had a couple of days break, the body is fresh and looking forward to going out there and giving our 100 percent,” says LSG skipper KL Rahul.

Quinton de Kock(w), KL Rahul(c), Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Krunal Pandya, Ayush Badoni, Jason Holder, Dushmantha Chameera, Ravi Bishnoi, Avesh Khan, Mohsin Khan

Aaron Finch, Baba Indrajith(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Shivam Mavi, Harshit Rana

“Unfortunately Umesh pulled his calf muscle and Harshit Rana comes in. It is really important as a captain to have a great combination right from the first game but there are so many injuries and niggles you have to keep chopping and changing, but that is part and parcel of the game,” says Shreyas.

“We will look to bowl first. Considering the wicket which looks dry and dew is not going to play a massive role on this ground,” says Shreyas Iyer.

Kolkata Knight Riders have won the toss and have opted to bowl

“There has been more help when the spinners have bowled slower, less than 90kph. The grass has been shaved off, not much grass left and that has exposed the top soil. It is nice and hard but a bit abrasive. It is going to help the spinners a lot more especially with dew not being a factor,” reckons Deep Dasgupta about the surface.

Young leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi stood apart with his 1/28 against Delhi Capitals. Lucknow will hope for an encore.

We are just minutes away from the toss… stay tuned!

Dushmantha Chameera and Jason Holder would need to forget their hammering by Delhi Capitals. While the Sri Lankan bled 44 runs in his four, the West Indian all-rounder conceded 45 in his four-over spell.

Pacer Mohsin Khan, who snared four wickets in their last game, will also have a big role to play against the likes of Shreyas Iyer and Andre Russell. Lucknow are currently on a three-game winning run and two more points will help them claim the playoffs seat.

With 53 wickets, Umesh Yadav is just two plucks away from surpassing Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Sandeep Sharma in list of bowlers with highest number of IPL wickets in first six overs.

All-rounder Krunal Pandya is also having one of his best IPL seasons. The Baroda cricketer has plucked nine wickets at an average of 20.7 and with an economy of 6.64. His economy is the second-best this year after Sunil Narine (5.25). Also, Krunal can chip in with batting cameos as well.

Rahul has a chance to inch closer to Jos Buttler in the Orange Cap race. The Indian has been a consistent performer in the T20 league with four 500-plus seasons in the last four editions.

“KL is a street smart batsman. He is capable of batting at any position, he has done that in India colours and one can do that with such ease only if he’s talented. He is one of the most valuable Indian batters because he has the ability to play in different modes,” said Irfan Pathan on Star Sports about Rahul’s skill-set.

Nitish Rana has hit 179 runs in the last five games and Kolkata will expect more runs from the left-handed batter. He’s the ability to clear the boundary fence with absolute ease, with his strike rate being 143.2.

Teams batting first in Pune this season have been victorious on seven out of 10 occasions so far. 

Win the toss and bat first?

Kolkata Knight Riders flaunt an impressive record at Pune, having played seven games and won all of them. Their last game at the venue was against Mumbai Indians where Pat Cummins hammered a 15-ball 56.

Kolkata snapped their five-game losing streak by defeating Rajasthan in their last game. While Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh produced match-winning knocks, Anukul Roy played his part to return 1/28. Roy made his place in the Playing XI after replacing Venkatesh Iyer and might get another chance tonight as well.

KKR dished out a clinical show when they restricted Rajasthan Royals to a modest 152. While Umesh and Narine were brilliant, the onus will be on Southee to put up an improved show with the ball.

Umesh Yadav has been brilliant for Kolkata this season. The Indian has already got 15 wickets in 10 games.

“We have been talking about Umesh Yadav right from the start. He has increased his pace, bowls those hard lengths and as a captain you just have to give him the ball to deliver,” Shreyas said on the in-form pacer.

The biggest worry for Kolkata Knight Riders has been their out-of-form openers. They have tried different combinations, but none has worked so far. Aaron Finch and Baba Indrajith had started the innings in the last game.

While Lucknow look to seal playoffs berth, Kolkata have their task cut out against the IPL newbies. Led by Shreyas Iyer, the two-time IPL champions are languishing in the eighth spot with eight points and after four wins from 10 games. A win tonight will help Kolkata stay alive in the top-4 race.

Aaron Finch, Baba Indrajith(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Nitish Rana, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Shivam Mavi, Pat Cummins, Sam Billings, Venkatesh Iyer, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ajinkya Rahane, Mohammad Nabi, Sheldon Jackson, Chamika Karunaratne, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Aman Hakim Khan, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar, Harshit Rana

Rahul has been in a league of his own and the Indian team management will have a close eye on his batting exploits. He’s been playing the role of an anchor for LSG and might play a similar role in the national side.

In the last World T20, their batting order didn’t yield favourable results and India look to put up a much-improved show this year in Australia. 

Former Indian player Mohammed Kaif believes Rahul is capable of playing aggressive shots from the word go, and the Karnataka batter has all strokes in his arsenal.

“Rahul is trying to play captaincy innings this year. He can be aggressive from the word go and he’s capable of starting his innings with a six but he is curbing his instincts in order to play long and impactful knocks. He has all the shots in his arsenal.”

Every Lucknow Super Giants player will be wearing a jersey with name of his mother on the back. The franchise is dedicating it to all the mothers of the world on the occasion of Mother’s Day.

In-form KL Rahul has earned massive praise from pundits and former India players. Former Indian cricketer Suresh Raina reckons the batter is in the best phase of his career.

“He is in the best mindset right now, he’s batting with a very positive mindset. He is playing some amazing shots which proves that he is in the best phase of his career. He is trying a few new things as well this season,” Raina said on ‘Cricket Live’ on Star Sports.

Not to forget, Lucknow Super Giants have wide-ranging options ability in Marcus Stoinis and Jason Holder, and the overseas pair needs to click in either department. Holder is someone who can bowl at any stage of the game, while Stoinis can chip in with some big sixes.

Quinton de Kock has got starts but he’s yet to conjure a big score. The spotlight will also be on Deepak Hooda, who had hit a brisk 52 against Delhi Capitals.

While Rahul has been in phenomenal form, Lucknow will expect runs from their other batters as well. Quinton de Kock, Ayush Badoni, Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya look to play their part at the MCA Stadium. 

A win tonight will present Lucknow with a chance to claim the top spot. Gujarat Titans currently occupy the No.1 spot with 16 points, while Lucknow remain two points away.

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

This is the first instance of these two teams face each other, and it remains to be seen whether both sides alter their playing eleven. LSG gave Avesh Khan a rest in the next game and the Indian pacer could return if he’s fit again.

1. Jos Buttler (RR) – 588 runs

2. KL Rahul (LSG) – 451 runs

3. Shikhar Dhawan (PBKS) – 369 runs

4. David Warner (DC) – 356 runs

5. Hardik Pandya (GT) – 333 runs

Rahul had scored 77 in Lucknow’s narrow win against Delhi Capitals, which was their third on the bounce. Lucknow will hope for their skipper to do an encore.

New entrants Lucknow are favourites to achieve a top-4 finish, thanks to a brilliant batting display from their skipper KL Rahul. He’s hit 451 runs from 10 matches, with two hundreds and as many fifties to be the second-highest run-getter this season.

Hello and welcome to the live coverage of the blockbuster IPL 2022 clash between Lucknow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders. It’s indeed been a tournament of surprises so far! The two new franchises occupy the first two spots at the moment, while Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings languish at the bottom. Kolkata are also in the same boat, having notched up just four wins from 10 games and placed eighth in the table.

Kolkata face a stiff challenge from Lucknow, who are on course to secure a play-off berth. Expecting humdinger of a contest… stay tuned for live updates!