TATA IPL 2023 Lucknow Super Giants vs Punjab Kings Match Report: This is the third win of Punjab Kings in five matches. On the other hand, Lucknow, which has won two consecutive victories, has its second defeat in this season.
Lucknow: In the 21st match of IPL 2023, Punjab Kings have succeeded in ending the losing streak. In the match played at Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ground against Lucknow Super Giants, Punjab performed strongly even in the absence of its captain Shikhar Dhawan and won by 2 wickets. Excellent all-round performance from Sikandar Raza (57 runs and 1 wicket) and then a tremendous finishing touch from Shahrukh Khan (23 not out) helped Punjab win out of a difficult situation. This is his third win in five matches.
The competition was between two such teams, which entered this match with consecutive wins and consecutive defeats. Lucknow had won two consecutive matches and was also a contender for victory in its home ground. At the same time, Punjab Kings, who started the season with two consecutive wins, had lost both their previous matches. The question was, will the cycle of both continue or will one be able to break it? Punjab got success in this matter.
The target in front of Punjab Kings was not very big, but the way Lucknow’s new bowler Yudhveer Singh Charak started, it was decided that this match is not going to be so easy. Without Shikhar Dhawan, Punjab’s batting looked weak in this match but Matthew Short tried to bring the team back into the match by playing a short and quick innings. After him Sikandar Raza took charge. Raza’s first IPL season did not start well but this time he got the team out of a difficult situation.
Sikandar scored his first IPL half-century in 35 balls. During this, he kept the team in the path of victory by sharing partnerships of 30 and 37 runs with Harpreet Bhatia and captain Sam Karan. However, the Lucknow captain delayed bringing Ravi Bishnoi into the attack, which surprised everyone. Bishnoi came in the 14th over and soon took 2 wickets. Within the last 4 overs, Shahrukh Khan scored 23 runs in 10 balls and gave the team victory by hitting a four in the last over.
Earlier, star all-rounder Sam Karan, who was commanding Punjab, himself performed strongly in bowling. The Punjab captain took 4 wickets for 31 runs, which did not allow Lucknow to reach the big score. Apart from his captain KL Rahul, no other batsman could play a big innings for Lucknow. Rahul scored his first half-century of this season in 40 balls. On the basis of his 74 runs, the team could somehow reach the score of 159. Apart from Karan for Punjab, Kagiso Rabada (2 wickets) also got success.
