The 34th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, played at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, saw Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) emerge victorious by a convincing eight-wicket against Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
LSG captain KL Rahul won the toss and elected to field first. The decision proved fruitful as their pace duo of Mohsin Khan and Yash Dayal rattled CSK’s top order early. They dismissed Rachin Ravindra for a golden duck and Ruturaj Gaikwad cheaply (17 off 13). Ajinkya Rahane offered some resistance with a valuable 36 off 24 balls.
In a surprise move, Chennai promoted Ravindra Jadeja up the batting order, and he responded well with a well-paced 57* off 40 deliveries. Shivam Dube and Sameer Rizvi failed to capitalize. Moeen Ali (30 off 20) provided crucial support with a 50-run stand alongside Jadeja. MS Dhoni‘s quickfire 28 off nine balls propelled the visitors to a respectable total of 176.
In reply, Lucknow openers Quinton de Kock (54 off 43) and Rahul (82 off 53) stitched together a magnificent 134-run partnership, effectively taking the game away from the defending champions. This stand marked their second-highest partnership for the home team across all wickets. Rahul continued the momentum with a further 50-run partnership alongside Nicholas Pooran (23* off 12) before departing. Marcus Stoinis (8* off 7) finished the chase alongside Pooran, securing a comfortable win for Lucknow.
KL Rahul was deservedly adjudged the Player of the Match for his stellar knock of 82 off 53 balls, complimented by his impressive work behind the stumps where he effected three crucial dismissals.
With this victory, the Super Giants hold on to the fifth position in the points table, tied with the Super Kings on 8 points. However, the men in yellow retain the third spot due to a superior net run rate.
Scorecard:
Chennai Super Kings: 176-6, Overs 20, Ravindra Jadeja 57*, Krunal Pandya 2/16
Lucknow Super Giants: 183, Overs 19.1, KL Rahul 82, Matheesha Pathirana 1/29