Good morning,
Another day, another loss for the Lucknow Super Giants. The gap between the top two and the bottom two is indeed widening and we have not yet reached the halfway mark.
Here's Cricbuzz Pulse, your 2-minute scan of the IPL-verse.
@B0$
No run-fest at the Ekana once again as RR made 159/6 before @L0$
There were no heroics from Vaibhav Sooryavanshi nor Yashasvi Jaiswal this time.
Ravindra Jadeja dragged his team past 150 and then delivered with the ball as well.
Ayush Badoni, Rishabh Pant and Aiden Markram combined to score 0 off 10.
A recovery was just not in sight despite Mitchell Marsh's fifty as LSG went down for the fourth successive time.
@B1$
A 7th successive loss at home for LSG! Only two teams have had a worse record on their own turf in IPL history. If things don't change quickly, LSG will topple that in a matter of days. It's very clear that LSG have an identity crisis at the Ekana stadium. The surface had a clear tilt towards spin in its early days, but since 2024 it has been a pace-friendly venue. LSG, despite possessing a strong pace attack, haven't been @L1$ and that is down to their batting lineup.
@B2$
The @B3$ goes to Ravindra Jadeja. He took 24 balls for his first boundary - the longest anyone has taken in IPL 2026. He was eventually named Player of the Match.
The @B4$ goes to Mohsin Khan for keeping Vaibhav Sooryavanshi quiet for an entire over before dismissing him. No one had ever bowled a maiden over to this kid in the IPL before.
The @B5$ goes to Mitchell Marsh for denying Jofra Archer a first-ball wicket for the fourth straight game. Archer almost had him when he bowled an inswinging yorker, only for Marsh to dig it out somehow.
The @B6$ goes to our reporter at the venue Aadya Sharma for not getting involved in a scuffle outside the press box last night after the game.
@B7$
It's fascinating how Jofra Archer can still @L2$. Here's a player who, three years ago, looked finished in the IPL. On a surface @L3$ by LSG head coach Justin Langer, Archer was at his menacing best, even bowling a delivery clocked at 151.6 kmph. While he didn't pick up a wicket off his first ball this time, Archer still had a productive Powerplay once more. No one has more wickets than Archer in that phase in IPL 2026. And by the end of the night, no one had more wickets for RR in their entire history.
@B8$
"Hopefully, I can stay fit for the rest of the games. I want to play all this year". Jofra Archer wants to make up for lost time in the IPL and that is not good news for the batters.
Jadeja claimed that the wicket wasn't ideal for T20's slam-bang mode. "It was a challenging T20 match, not the typical one with fireworks from both sides. It challenges you mentally, and skill-wise you have to be sharp".
RR captain Riyan Parag pointed out how "blessed'' he is to have "two bowlers to bowl 3-3 in the powerplay at this stage of the game or how T20 cricket is evolving."
"We could have taken some time while batting," claimed LSG skipper Rishabh Pant while also "including myself in that" ensuring he wasn't shying away from his own performances.
@B9$
Last night, Jadeja was named Player of the Match for the 17th time in IPL history. The previous 16 had all come for CSK. Overall, amongst the Indian players, only the holy trinity of Rohit, Kohli and Dhoni have won it more.
@B10$
Contrary to popular belief, word is that a certain IPL owner didn't set up a meeting with his coach or captain after a fixture. Sometimes, acceptance works wonders.
@B11$
On form, this might not be the glamorous fixture that it once was. But @L4$ will always attract eyeballs. Two of the most successful franchises of all time are colliding, with a massive question of 'will he or won't he' hanging over us. And oh, CSK better ensure Tilak Varma doesn't @L5$.
@B12$
At least three players will be seen playing their first match of the season.
