Led from the front by South African star Quinton de Kock, Indian Premier League (IPL) newcomers Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) earned their third straight win after a close-fought encounter against Delhi Capitals (DC) in Mumbai on Thursday (April 7).
De Kock smashed 80 off 52 balls before being dismissed by Kuldeep Yadav in the 16th over. But by then the damage had been done as Ayush Badoni finished the job with some brilliant hard-hitting in the final over of the match before Krunal Pandya's crucial six in the penultimate over.
The arrivals of David Warner and Anrich Nortje did not do much to help DC's cause as they suffered their second consecutive loss. Meanwhile, after a defeat in their opening game against Gujarat Titans (GT), the franchise from Lucknow have done well to redeem themselves with three straight wins.
Let's have a look at the IPL 2022 Points Table:
Following LSG's important six-wicket victory over DC, they have moved up to second on the IPL table, pushing RR down to third spot while Punjab Kings (PBKS) move out of the top four. However, Punjab will have a chance to move up the table when they face Hardik Pandya and his Titans on Friday (April 8).
Team, Match, Win, Loss, Point, Run Rate
Kolkata Knight Riders, 4, 3, 1, 4, 1.102
Lucknow Super Giants, 4, 3, 1, 6, 0.256
Rajasthan Royals, 3, 2, 1, 4, 1.218
Gujarat Titans, 2, 2, 0, 4, 0.495
Punjab Kings, 3, 2, 1, 4, 0.238
Royal Challengers Bangalore, 3, 2, 1, 4, 0.159
Delhi Capitals, 3, 1, 2, 2, -0.116
Chennai Super Kings, 3, 0, 3, 0, -1.251
Mumbai Indians, 3, 0, 3, 0, -1.362
Sunrisers Hyderabad, 2, 0, 2, 0, -1.825
Orange Cap
Riding on his century against Mumbai Indians (MI), Rajasthan Royals' (RR) Jos Buttler continued to dominate the Orange cap race, with 205 runs from three games. However, three LSG players moved into the top five after their win over DC.
De Kock's match-winning innings earned him a place above Ishan Kishan, moving to second on the list with 149 runs, although both players have the same number of runs. Meanwhile, KL Rahul (132) and Deepak Hooda (130) occupy the fourth and fifth spots respectively, moving above RCB skipper Faf du Plessis (122) and MI's Tilak Varma (121).
Purple Cap
KKR's Umesh Yadav leads the pack with nine scalps. Yuzvendra Chahal (7) is second on the list, followed by Avesh Khan (7) in third, and Rahul Chahar (6) in fourth. The only change in positions took place in the fifth spot, with Kuldeep (6) moving above RCB's Wanindu Hasaranga (6).
