Nicholas Pooran faces a significant challenge against Mohammed Siraj as the Gujarat Titans, currently at the top of the table, meet the Lucknow Super Giants in an IPL match today (April 12).
With the sweltering heat of Lucknow, an exciting contest is expected since both teams are closely matched. The Titans have secured four consecutive wins, sitting confidently in first place with eight points, thanks to their superior net run rate over the Delhi Capitals, who are also enjoying four victories.
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On the other hand, LSG are currently fifth with six points, navigating a congested mid-table, but they are showing signs of improvement.
In matches of this magnitude, key sub-plots often determine outcomes, and this game will showcase a battle between the tournament’s leading run-scorer, Pooran, and Siraj, one of the best fast bowlers in the league.
Pooran is leading the run charts with 288 runs and has only one failure in five innings. His impressive tally includes 24 sixes and 25 fours, reflecting his dominance in the T20 format. With a strike rate of 225, he poses a serious threat to any opposing captain. Positioned at No. 3 by head coach Justin Langer, Pooran has thrived under the leadership of skipper Rishabh Pant.
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However, Pooran will have to contend with Siraj, a skilled bowler who has excelled during Powerplay overs, taking 10 wickets in five matches with a respectable economy rate of 7.70, especially considering the rapid pace of the game.
Siraj’s ability to bowl traditional Test-length deliveries while generating movement off the pitch is also noteworthy. Hitting him during Powerplay isn’t easy, and both Pooran and the opening pair of Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh will need to be cautious.
The absence of Kagiso Rabada hasn’t hindered the Titans, as Prasidh Krishna has emerged as a revelation this season, claiming 8 wickets with an economy rate of 7.05. Additionally, left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore has outperformed the team’s star spinner Rashid Khan, taking 10 wickets while maintaining an economy rate of 7.25.
LSG vs GT: Ekana Cricket Stadium pitch report
There’s a slight possibility of rain in the evening, but a significant interruption is unlikely in Lucknow. So far at the Ekana Cricket Stadium, pacers have claimed 15 wickets, while spinners have only taken six.
After Rishabh Pant and LSG mentor Zaheer Khan voiced their concerns about the pitch not supporting spinners in their loss to Punjab Kings, the curators prepared a black-soil surface. However, spinners only managed to take two out of the ten wickets that fell in the high-scoring 472-run match. Given that this is a day game, they may perform better this time around.
LSG vs GT: Playing XI team prediction
Lucknow Super Giants predicted XI: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Rathi
Impact sub: Ravi Bishnoi
Gujarat Titans predicted XI: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Arshad Khan, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Impact sub: Kulwant Khejroliya/Washington Sundar
LSG vs GT: Squads
Lucknow Super Giants squad: Lucknow Super Giants: Rishabh Pant (c&wk), David Miller, Aiden Markram, Aryan Juyal (wk), Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahmed, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Arshin Kulkarni, Ayush Badoni, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Akash Deep, Manimaran Siddharth, Digvesh Rathi, Akash Singh, Shamar Joseph, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi.
Gujarat Titans squad: B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (Captain), Jos Buttler (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Sherfane Rutherford, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ishant Sharma, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Arshad Khan, Jayant Yadav, Nishant Sindhu, Kulwant Khejroliya, Gerald Coetzee, Manav Suthar, Kumar Kushagra, Gurnoor Brar, Karim Janat.
LSG vs GT: Head-to-head
LSG and GT will meet today for only the sixth time in the IPL, and will meet in Lucknow for the third time. In the five matches before this, GT have been the clear winners, clinching four contests with LSG sealing the one remaining, which happened to be the most recent one.
LSG vs GT: Lucknow weather report
As per Accuweather, Lucknow is going to be sunny on Saturday morning, with temperatures rising as high as 36 degrees Celsius. There is a small chance of rain towards the evening, around 3pm with intermittent clouds.
