“The way everyone has stepped up has been brilliant”- KL Rahul

The newly formed franchise, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), registered its third win of the tournament against Delhi Capitals (DC) by six wickets on April 7. KL Rahul, the skipper of LSG, had won the toss and opted to bowl first at the DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai.

For Delhi, Prithvi Shaw smashed a 31-ball 64, thereby giving a flying start to the JSW-GMR group-owned franchise. Later, steady innings from Rishabh Pant and Sarfaraz Khan helped the team steer to 149 in 20 overs.

While chasing, Quinton de Kock smashed a 52-ball 80 and set up the stage for a comfortable chase with two balls to spare. However, after the win, de Kock, who won the Player of the Match award, said that the total was chasable, and they had a plan to start well in the powerplay.

He said, “It was a matter of just playing what's in front of you, reacting to it. It was a chasable score. You want a decent start in the powerplay, and we didn't want to get too ahead in the chase. Was important to keep wickets in hand. Prithvi did make it look easy for me. I also felt that it was a slow surface. Even with the dew, there was a bit of grip. If we were chasing 180, might have been difficult, but thanks to our bowlers.”

Meanwhile, the captain, KL Rahul, praised the bowlers. However, he also stated that the nature of the pitch couldn’t be understood beforehand, and that’s why it was better to assess the situation in the first innings and chase in the second. The wicketkeeper-batter also appreciated the bowlers' strategy to discuss the proper areas to bowl right after the powerplay.

Rahul said, “I think we were brilliant (with the ball). In the powerplay, we obviously need to go back and work on. But that's how powerplays go sometimes. We assessed things well after that and bowled better. Obviously, would have loved the bowlers to assess things a bit earlier, but it was nice to see them discuss the lines, lengths and pace to bowl after the powerplay. That was the honest reason actually (on him saying at the toss that he had no idea why he opted to bowl). Can't make up a reason every time.”

The 29-year-old also stated that the pitches are likely to grip more as the tournament progresses, and the teams might opt to bat first then. Moreover, he also heaped praise on Ayush Badoni, who has been magnificent in the lower middle order for the Super Giants.

“Once the tournament goes on, and the pitches grip a bit, teams might want to bat. He (Badoni) has held his nerve every time he has gone into bat, and he's delivered for us under pressure. Great learning for him, important for him to keep working hard and stay humble. Been a complete team effort so far. The way everyone has stepped up has been brilliant,” Rahul cited.

On the other hand, DC captain Rishabh Pant opined on the dew factor as one of the main reasons for the loss in the ongoing league. But he also admitted that they were 10-15 runs short.

“When the dew is like that, you can't be complaining. As a batting unit, we were 10-15 short, at the end Avesh and Holder pulled it back, credit to them. We were talking about giving 100% till the last ball of the 40th over, no matter what happens [on his chat to the team before the start of the 2nd innings]. The powerplay was fine, we didn't get any wicket, our spin attack did well in the middle overs but in the end, we were 10-15 short,” Pant concluded.