Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper Krunal Pandya took full responsibility for his team’s disappointing exit from the IPL 2023 after suffering a crushing 81-run defeat against the Mumbai Indians (MI). Reflecting on the match, Pandya lamented poor shot selection as a crucial factor in their collapse.
Opting to bat first after winning the toss, MI struggled initially, losing both their openers within the first five overs with only 38 runs on the board. However, a solid partnership between Cameron Green and Suryakumar Yadav helped stabilize the innings, taking the score past the 100-run mark. Unfortunately, both batsmen fell in quick succession to Naveen-ul-Haq. Late cameos from Tilak Varma and Nehal Wadhera propelled MI to a competitive total of over 180 runs.
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In response, LSG endured a disastrous batting display, getting bundled out for a mere 101 runs in under 17 overs. The Krunal Pandya-led side never seemed in contention to chase down the target, losing wickets at regular intervals. Apart from Marcus Stoinis, who managed to score 40, none of the Lucknow batsmen could offer significant resistance. Notably, it was Akash Madhwal of MI who shone with the ball, delivering a remarkable spell of 5 wickets for just 5 runs in 3.3 overs.
Expressing his disappointment after the match, Krunal Pandya acknowledged his own dismissal as the turning point in the game. LSG was relatively well-placed at 69 for 2 in the 9th over when Pandya got out. Subsequently, their batting collapsed, leading to their eventual dismissal for a meager 101 runs.
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Pandya refrained from attributing blame to the pitch and instead accepted responsibility for their batting woes. He also disclosed the reason behind Quinton de Kock’s omission in favor of Kyle Mayers, citing Mayers’ better track record. Pandya also highlighted the decision to start with spin against the MI batters due to their proficiency against fast bowlers.
“We were in a good position at one stage, but everything started to go wrong when I played that shot. We should have played better cricket. I completely take the blame for that shot. The ball was coming nicely onto the bat; we just had to bat better. We didn’t play good cricket after the strategic break. Quinton de Kock is a quality batter, but Mayers has a better record here, so we went ahead with him. Their batters bat really well against fast bowlers, so I thought of starting with spin against them,” Krunal Pandya confessed.
