While Royal Challengers Bangalore’s top order held the fort with half-centuries, Lucknow Super Giants appeared to lose control of the match. Super Giants’ victory at Chinnaswamy Stadium is attributable primarily to the middle order, specifically Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran.
Pooran contributed 62 runs off 19 balls, marking the fastest half-century in the TATA IPL 2023. He was complemented by Stoinis for a strong partnership, putting up a total of 65 runs in 30 balls. Pooran received the title of Man of the Match, and rightly so for all his efforts to ensure that the side went to the top of the leaderboard.
Stoinis and Pooran appeared for a friendly interview after the match. Pooran emphasized that it was the need of the hour that helped him keep up the pace. Also, it was required to have a set batter on the field to chase the target of 213 in 20 overs. The plan was simple, and it was replicated by Stoinis as well.
The LSG batter moved as fast as he could without compromising a set batter for the Giants.
RCB looked to claim victory at one point. The Giants were down 4 wickets in the 11th over, scoring 99 runs. Most importantly, it was Stoinis who left the field. He had brought in 65 runs by hitting six 4s and five 6s. The strike rate of 216.67 would have only gone up in the coming months.
KL Rahul returned to the pavilion shortly after that, leaving LSG with a total score of 105 for losing 5 wickets. It was then all up to Pooran and his batting style to pick up the winning pieces. He did leave the ball for a boundary while keeping the wicket but made up for it with a match-winning knock.
Siraj picked up Pooran for 16.6 overs when the work was almost done. It was all about carrying forward the momentum. Ayush Badoni picked up 30 runs in 24 balls. LSG inched towards victory during nervous moments. The last batters to remain were Ravi Bishnoi and Avesh Khan.
Harshal Patel’s attempt to stump Mankad Bishnoi with the final delivery nearly won the match for RCB. Patel was already well into his stride, so Bishnoi was not given out. Dinesh Karthik could have stopped the ball. The batter was given the opportunity to cross the pitch for a single after missing it.
Emotions for fans and odds at the betting sites for cricket swung throughout the innings of the RCB and LSG. The Plessis-led RCB demonstrated the strength of its top order, where the skipper remained unbeaten for 79 off 46 balls.
Amit Mishra picked Virat Kohli for a wrongly timed shot. Nothing yet changes the fact that RCB gave everything in its capacity to bring the contest to their side. Now ranked 7th with an NRR of -0.800, the Challengers will look to bounce back in their next match, and the Giants will look to retain the top spot of the chart in the TATA IPL 2023.
