Rishabh Pant, the Lucknow Super Giants captain, won the toss and chose to bowl first against Punjab Kings in a Sunday clash at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, New Chandigarh. In a notable tweak to the LSG XI, Manimaran Siddharth was brought into the playing lineup, while Digvesh Rathi made way. Punjab Kings, meanwhile, stuck with the same team they had selected earlier.
Quick facts
- Match: Lucknow Super Giants vs Punjab Kings
- Venue: Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium, Mullanpur (New Chandigarh)
- Day: Sunday
- Toss result: Rishabh Pant won the toss and chose to bowl first
- LSG change: Manimaran Siddharth in; Digvesh Rathi out
- PBKS: No changes to the selected side
At the toss, Pant said Lucknow wanted to set up the innings by bowling first. He added that Punjab Kings have been among the stronger teams in the competition, but that starting with the ball still gives LSG the freedom to play with more intent when the target is known. Pant also touched on the batting mindset, suggesting that chasing a score around the 220-mark can sometimes feel more favourable than chasing near 200.
Pant also confirmed the bowling decision was a strategic one and responded to a question about Siddharth’s availability, indicating the issue was “much better.” He reiterated the selection swap: Siddharth comes in and Rathi misses out. With that, he set the tone for a game plan built around controlling the opening innings.
Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer described the contest as a challenge for his side, especially because it would provide clarity for how to approach the first innings going forward in the tournament. He noted that Punjab had not batted first in their previous outings, so this match offered a valuable learning opportunity. Iyer framed it as a collective task, saying it would be a team effort to turn that challenge into a positive result.
When asked what areas needed improvement, Iyer was direct in his goal: a comprehensive win. He referenced the number of matches played so far and pointed out that there was still a “moment” the team had not managed to fulfil yet. According to his comments, the next step was to bring their best together as a group and deliver the kind of performance that leads to a thorough victory, while also sticking with the same XI for this game.
Playing XI and impact options
Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav, Manimaran Siddharth, Mohsin Khan.
Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh (w), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Shashank Singh, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Impact substitutes — Lucknow Super Giants: Abdul Samad, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Matthew Breetzke, Mayank Yadav, Himmat Singh.
Impact substitutes — Punjab Kings: Vijaykumar Vyshak, Harpreet Brar, Suryansh Shedge, Yash Thakur, Vishnu Vinod.
