Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) scored 227 runs in the first innings of the 70th match of the Indian Premier League 2025 (IPL 2025) against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) scheduled at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday.
Opting to bowl first, RCB looked to put the early pressure on LSG. But it was not the case as LSG’s opener Mitchell Marsh (67 runs off 37 balls) and captain Rishabh Pant (118* runs off 61 balls) were upto the task and batted without any pressure.
Pant finally came good for LSG in an otherwise forgetful season. He smashed a century and ended the season on a high.
Rishabh Pant, Mitchell Marsh Tears RCB to Shreds
Mitchell Marsh, centurion of the last match, carried on in the same touch, and scored a boundary off the first over bowled by Nuwan Thushara, who was making his debut for the RCB. Matthew Breetzke (14 runs off 12 balls), who was also on his IPL debut, ended the first over with a boundary.
Breetzke tonked a six off Krunal Pandya but departed in the third over as Thushara shattered the stumps on a low full-toss.
Rishabh Pant promoted himself to No. 3. He took the attack to Yash Dayal straightaway and hammered three boundaries, including a massive six, in the fourth over that cost RCB 18 runs.
RCB pulled back things in the final two overs of the powerplay. Bhuvneshwar Kumar conceded only four runs in the fifth over, while Thushara also kept things tight in the sixth, giving away only seven runs. RCB scored 55 runs for the loss of one wicket in the powerplay.
Things did not change much after the powerplay. While Marsh struggled initially, it was Pant, who tried to maximise on every loose delivery, ensuring that he dispatches the ball into the stands.
Pant brought up his second fifty of IPL 2025 with a boundary in the 10th over and inarguably played his best knock of the season.
Marsh upped the ante in the 12th over with a four and a six off Romario Shepherd. The Aussie notched up his sixth half-century of the season in the 13th over, smacking Suyash Sharma for a six.
The ball continued to sail over the boundary. The LSG batters clubbed two sixes each from overs 14-16.
After clobbering two consecutive maximums off Bhuvneshwar in the 16th over, Marsh perished as the the veteran pacer provided RCB a much-needed breakthrough.
Pant did not slow down after Marsh's dismissal. He brought up his second IPL hundred with a boundary in the 18th over off Bhuvneshwar. The southpaw celebrated the milestone with a somersault.
Eventually, RCB finished at 227 runs for the loss of three wickets, which is now their highest score at the Ekana Stadium.
RCB Need a Win for Qualifier 1 Spot
RCB have a mountain to climb. While they have already booked their place in the playoffs, this is an important run-chase for them if they want to confirm their spot in the top two.
They now must hope that the opening duo of Virat Kohli and Phil Salt starts off explosively and the Tim David-less middle-order also comes good.
To know more about today's IPL 2025 match between LSG and RCB:
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