Lucknow Super Giants captain Rishabh Pant said their win over defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru carried extra weight for a side that had been struggling badly. Coming into Thursday’s IPL match, LSG had endured a six-game skid, but they finally broke the streak with a nine-run Duckworth–Lewis–Stern (DLS) result in a rain-affected contest reduced to 19 overs per team.
The victory also ended a difficult spell at home for Lucknow, with it becoming their first win at their venue in five matches this season. Pant described it as a team effort built on getting the batting and bowling departments to click together rather than relying on a single phase.
LSG end losing run as rain forces DLS finish
In his post-match comments, Pant said the result mattered “for the whole team” and that the group had been experimenting with different combinations in search of consistency. He added that while the campaign has been tough, periods of grind are part of the journey in franchise cricket, and the key is to keep working while trying to find the right balance.
“We were trying to put together a perfect game where batting and bowling comes together,” Pant said, underlining that the win did not come from one standout moment alone. He suggested that the side’s process—staying aligned and building together—was the reason it managed to close out the shortened game.
Quick facts
- LSG beat Royal Challengers Bengaluru by 9 runs via DLS in a rain-interrupted match.
- The match was reduced to 19 overs per side.
- It snapped LSG’s six-match losing streak.
- It was LSG’s first home win in five matches this season.
- LSG captain Rishabh Pant backed Digvesh Rathi for the final over when defending 20 runs.
- Mitchell Marsh scored 111 off 56 balls for LSG.
- RCB captain Rajat Patidar said they were close to the target but missed by “two-three hits.”
With the game delicately poised during the late stages, Pant also spoke about the decision to hand Digvesh Rathi the responsibility of bowling the last over while defending a total of 20 runs. He admitted it was a difficult call because the match was under pressure, but said Rathi was the right option against Romario Shepherd based on the matchup.
Pant then praised Mitchell Marsh, whose innings earned him centurion status and proved decisive in setting up the platform for Lucknow. He said the team had been grinding hard and pointed to bowling as the unit’s strength, crediting the bowlers for putting in serious effort to keep the opposition under control.
Patidar: RCB were close, just short of the finish
RCB captain Rajat Patidar acknowledged that his side had been in a good position while chasing, but felt they fell slightly short in the execution required at the death overs. He said the batting track offered assistance and that the ball was coming nicely onto the bat, yet the margin to chase down the target ultimately proved too fine.
Patidar described the defeat as a missed chance to move to the top of the points table. Still, he stressed that the season is far from over, adding that the focus should remain on the next game and taking it “one step at a time,” rather than dwelling on this setback.
He also highlighted Marsh’s 111, saying the innings kept RCB under pressure and that it left him unsure about the bowling plans immediately after the powerplay. Patidar suggested that the intent from the entire batting group was positive, and he expressed confidence that everyone is currently in a strong mindset heading forward.
