TATA IPL 2024: Marcus Stoinis Leads LSG to Third Spot; MI's Playoff Hopes Fade
Lucknow Super Giants managed to secure a vital victory in a lackluster match of IPL 2024 after limiting Mumbai Indians to a mere 144 runs. Marcus Stoinis shone brightly, contributing 62 runs with the bat and claiming 1 for 19 with the ball, steering LSG to a crucial four-wicket triumph over MI at the Ekana Cricket Stadium.
During the chase of a modest target of 145 on a sluggish wicket, Nuwan Thushara made an early breakthrough by dismissing Arshin Kulkarni for a golden duck. KL Rahul assumed the role of anchoring the innings, cautiously accumulating 5 runs from 13 balls in the first three overs, evidently intending to bat through the innings, thereby entrusting the task of aggressive play to his teammates. LSG suffered a setback when skipper Rahul departed for 28, caught brilliantly by Mohammad Nabi off Hardik Pandya's bowling, thereby allowing Mumbai to regain momentum, as they had stitched together a partnership of 58 runs off 40 deliveries for the second wicket.
Stoinis was looking good and Deepak Hooda was decent in the four balls he had faced. Stoinis was impressive with another fifty, but LSG stumbled toward the end, taking the game until the last over. The experience of Nicholas Pooran came in handy as the home team successfully went past the finish line with 4 balls to spare. LSG moved to the third spot in the IPL 2024 points table, leapfrogging CSK while MI is ninth in the points table with just 3 wins in 10 matches.
Previously, Mumbai Indians reached a total of 144/7, courtesy of Nehal Wadhera's 46 and Tim David's late surge of 35 runs. Lucknow implemented a distinct bowling strategy during the Powerplay overs against Mumbai, which yielded fruitful results. Marcus Stoinis made a breakthrough in his second over by dismissing the dangerous Suryakumar Yadav for 10 runs. Prior to that, Mohsin Khan removed skipper Rohit Sharma for just four runs in the second over of the innings.
Tilak Varma got run out in the chaos of an LBW appeal by Ravi Bishnoi guiding the backward point, as he forgot about where the ball was. Then walked skipper Hardik Pandya in the crease. He got out for a first-ball duck. Mumbai were in serious trouble with 28 for 4 on the scoreboard in the powerplay. Five boundaries in eight overs and Kishan trying to go for more was out caught for 32 off 36. Ravi Bishnoi, nominally a leg spinner, took out another left-hander with his googly. Nehal Wadhera and Ishan Kishan added a run-up ball of 53 for the fifth wicket.
Amidst Mumbai's challenging phase, Nehal Wadhera emerged as their leading force, steering the team ahead with a composed innings of 46 runs from 41 balls. It was the type of innings that batsmen typically prefer to avoid in T20 cricket. Wadhera's acceleration notably came from his aggressive approach against Mayank, with their head-to-head battle resulting in 21 runs scored off 12 deliveries, including two boundaries and two sixes.
