Magazine : 
TATA IPL 2024: Mayank Yadav Shines as LSG Secures 21-Run Victory Over PBKS
Shikhar Dhawan's impressive innings of 70 runs ended in disappointment as Lucknow Super Giants secured their first victory of the season by defeating Punjab Kings by 21 runs at Ekana Cricket Stadium. Despite their strong start, with Dhawan and Jonny Bairstow combining for a 102-run opening partnership and scoring 61 runs in the powerplay overs, Punjab Kings fell short in their pursuit of the challenging 200-run target. Bairstow, recognized for his aggressive approach, assumed responsibility for scoring runs swiftly while Dhawan focused on stabilizing the innings. Debutant Mayank Yadav played a pivotal role for Lucknow Super Giants, claiming three wickets for 27 runs.
The first two overs saw only 16 runs on the board but soon Dhawan changed his gear and smashed 16 runs off Manimaran Siddharth in his first over. Dhawan then scored 14 runs in Mohsin Khan’s second over and soon reached his half-century with a six in Ravi Bishnoi’s over. Bairstow on the other hand took Krunal Pandya under his radar and hammered back-to-back sixes in the ninth over of the inning. Punjab reached 98 for none after the end of ten overs with Dhawan on 56 and Bairstow on 42.
The pace sensation for LSG, Mayank Yadav, who also made a record of bowling the fastest delivery (155.8kmph) of the season (IPL 2024), drew the first blood after getting rid of Bairstow for 42 with a 143 km/h delivery. Mayank followed Bairstow into the pitch, where he discovered the upper edge of the pull. Bairstow was deep in the crease, moving quickly even though it appeared like he had prearranged the shot. It was a length ball on top of the leg and Marcus Stoinis completed the catch on the backward square leg diving front.
Prabhsimran Singh coming at number three slogged sweep Ravi Bishnoi for a four in the very third delivery of his inning and then a maximum on the last delivery of the over. Just when Prabhsimran was looking dangerous skipper Pooran brought Mayank back into the attack after getting hit for a six in the second delivery, Yadav with his raw pace sent Prabhsimran to the pavilion. He scored 19 off six deliveries. Mayank Yadav on his debut clinched the second wicket and brought LSG back into the game.
In his final over of the spell, Yadav dismissed wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Sharma with a menacing 144 km/h bouncer aimed at the body. Attempting to dispatch the ball over mid-wicket, Jitesh mistimed his shot, resulting in a top edge that landed directly in the hands of Naveen-ul-Haq, positioned at short mid-wicket. Mayank concluded his spell with figures of three wickets for 27 runs from four overs.
Continuing his struggle to find boundaries, Dhawan managed to add just 19 runs from 20 deliveries after reaching his half-century. In his final over of the spell, Mohsin Khan struck twice in quick succession, removing Dhawan for 70 runs and dismissing Sam Curran without scoring a run.
In the final three overs of the game, Punjab found themselves requiring 58 runs with Liam Livingstone taking the crease. However, Livingstone's efforts were ultimately insufficient to rescue Punjab from the mounting pressure. As the match reached its climax, Punjab was left with a daunting task of 41 runs in the last over. Despite Naveen's bowling conceding 17 runs, it was not enough to change the outcome, and LSG emerged victorious, claiming their first win of the season by a margin of 21 runs.
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