Lucknow Super Giants captain Rishabh Pant admitted they were 20-25 runs short of a par score after suffering an eight-wicket loss against Punjab Kings at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Tuesday.
LSG posted a below par score of 171 runs on the board after Shreyas Iyer decided to bowl first. Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni scored 44 and 41 runs respectively whereas Abdul Samad added the finishing touches with 12-ball 27 but the other batters failed to contribute much on a tricky pitch.
Arshdeep Singh returned with figures of 3-43 as he accounted for Mitchell Marsh, Ayush Badoni, and Abdul Samad.
On the other hand, Prabhsimran Singh scored a match-winning knock of 69 runs off just 34 balls after reaching his fifty off 23 balls. PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer and Nehal Wadhera scored 52 and 43 runs respectively for the visitors to get them across the line.
Rishabh Pant said in the post-match presentation, “It (the total) wasn’t enough, we were 20-25 runs short, but that’s part and parcel of the game. Still assessing the conditions at our home ground. It’s always going to be difficult to get a big total when you lose early wickets, but each and every player is trying hard to take the game forward.”
He added, “The idea was to get a slow wicket. I think the slower balls were sticking in. We got to learn from this game and move forward. There are a lot of positives, can’t say much.”
LSG will next take on Mumbai Indians at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow on Friday.
