Good morning,
It's Monday, again, and we know you have a busy day lined up. But before the chaos begins, here's a quick detour with Cricbuzz Pulse, your 2-min morning scan of the IPL universe.
@B0$
GT's top order bossed a much-anticipated clash in Lucknow, taking down LSG's new-ball attack with ease.
Prasidh Krishna's 4-for kept LSG to 165, before Gill and Buttler stitched an 84-run stand, capped off with that "ice in the veins" pose.
In Mumbai, RCB were put in and piled up 240/4.
Phil Salt set the tone at a strike rate above 216, while Kohli (132) and Patidar (265) made sure the @L0$.
The difference lay in spin: MI's spinners went at 1 for 83 in six overs, RCB's returned 3 for 72 in eight.
@B1$
KKR's search for answers might just have found a new option. @L1$ from Sri Lanka Cricket and is set to join the squad, with availability as early as the clash against CSK in Chennai on April 14.
@B2$
The@B3$ award goes to Glenn Phillips for somehow holding on to Ayush Badoni's catch with the sun drilling straight into his eyes.
The @B4$ award goes to Krunal Pandya for leaping in delight (and perhaps celebrating too hard) at Hardik's dismissal despite having no role in it.
The @B5$ award goes to Romario Shepherd for getting batters caught off successive balls, only for one to come off a no-ball and the other on a free-hit.
The @B6$ award goes to Jasprit Bumrah, the GOAT, for blinking and going wicketless this IPL making us all feel a little more comfortable in our own ordinary skin.
@B7$
Prasidh Krishna is doing an @L2$. He's picked up 15 wickets in overs 7-15 since IPL 2025, the most for any seamer while averaging 17.93 and striking every 15.2 balls. In Lucknow, he turned the game by removing Markram and Badoni in quick succession, helping restrict LSG to just 50/3 in the middle overs at 5.55 runs per over. What makes it more striking is his method, hard lengths and short balls, which brought him 4/12 in that match alone.
@B8$
Phil Salt spoke about making peace with not being able to "get runs every game", focusing instead on making it count when it is his day. He also felt RCB had a "few more in the tank" with the bat.
Bhuvneshwar quipped he's "learning" bouncers from Krunal, with dressing room jokes about left-arm spinners outbowling him in that department this season.
Suyash Sharma, part of the starting XI for a change, said his plan was to "bowl in the blockhole" to Ryan Rickelton and Tilak Varma, the two left-handers he dismissed on a punishing Wankhede surface.
Hardik Pandya admitted a "lot needs rethinking", including the decision to chase, a call that has not worked for them recently, even at Wankhede.
Prasidh Krishna revealed he put in extensive work to perfect hitting the pitch hard with his slower balls.
Jos Buttler admitted "few technical issues" had crept into his game, affecting his ability to "see the ball well", adding that stepping away helped him address it.
Rishabh Pant reiterated that his batting line-up is "great" but said they just could not put enough runs on the board.
@B9$
RCB now have 23 wins while defending 200+ runs in IPL, the most times alongside CSK.
@B10$
Birdies say that with Wankhede Stadium's chasing hegemony under threat despite the dew, the curators have quietly made a trip to Bengaluru to master the art of a pitch that's sticky just for a few overs at the start. But for immediate damage control, the North Stand might be allowed to use lasers in the first innings to distract the batters, just enough to keep the total in check and "chaseable".
@B11$
It's SRH v RR. It's Vaibhav Sooryavanshi at a venue where 250 can feel par on days, and against a bowling line-up that's still finding its bearings this season.
@B12$
Uppal will also prove to be too small a ground for @L3$
