Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) take on Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 Eliminator match on Wednesday (May 25) as KL Rahul-led side won the toss and opted to bowl first.
"We will bowl first. Simple reason, looks like a good wicket, we want to know what we are chasing. Hopefully we will get some swing and take few early wickets. Gowtham and Jason miss out, Krunal and Chameera come in. We were not able to utilize Jason who was batting at no. 8. It is always good if the top three set up the game for your team," LSG skipper Rahul said after winning the toss.
"It's a used wicket, but it looks a decent batting wicket. This ground is pretty small, so you can catch up towards the end. Siraj is back in the team. Calmness in the dressing room is the most important. We have got some good players in the team, who thrive for this occasion. Looking forward to playing tonight. We celebrated the game (DC v MI) as a fan, we need to play some good cricket tonight," RCB captain Faf du Plessis said before the match.
Talking about the match, both the team would want to win the match and take a step toward IPL final.
Kohli's return to form will be a big plus to their top-order which often has struggled to fire in the power-play.
Dinesh Karthik's finishing exploits, coupled with a quality pace trio in Josh Hazlewood, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Harshal Patel would look to embrace the seam-friendly Eden conditions. Faf du Plessis's calm and astute captaincy will help RCB be upbeat in their fight for an elusive IPL title.
When it comes to the Lucknow Super Giants, they have one of the best opening pairs this season, and the KL Rahul - de Kock partnership against KKR was a perfect example of that. QdK played a breathtaking knock to knockout the Knight Riders, but he also gave plenty of chances which were put down. In Avesh Khan, Mohsin Khan and Jason Holder, LSG have a sharp bowling attack.
Lucknow Super Giants' Playing XI: Quinton de Kock(w), KL Rahul(c), Evin Lewis, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Manan Vohra, Marcus Stoinis, Mohsin Khan, Avesh Khan, Dushmantha Chameera, Ravi Bishnoi.
Royal Challengers Bangalore's Playing XI: Faf du Plessis(c), Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Mahipal Lomror, Dinesh Karthik(w), Shahbaz Ahmed, Wanindu Hasaranga, Harshal Patel, Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj.
