When Mumbai Indians and Lucknow Super Giants face off in the Indian Premier League (IPL) match on Friday, all eyes will be on the performances of Rohit Sharma and Rishabh Pant. Five-time champions Mumbai Indians have not had a great season so far, securing only two points from three matches. Indian captain Rohit Sharma’s poor form is a major concern for Mumbai. The same applies to Lucknow’s captain, Rishabh Pant, who has been struggling to score runs. The poor performances of these key players have significantly impacted their teams’ results.
Ekana Stadium Pitch Report
The pitch is made of black soil, with one side of the ground shorter than the other. This means batters will likely target the shorter boundary. In the last six IPL matches at this venue, five have been won by teams chasing a target. However, there is no expectation of dew on match day, which could create difficult conditions for batting. Traditionally, this pitch has supported spinners, but in the previous game, it did not behave as expected, which even led to former cricketer Zaheer Khan expressing his dissatisfaction.
Head-to-Head Record (LSG vs MI)
Both teams have faced each other six times in IPL history. Lucknow Super Giants have won five matches, while Mumbai Indians have managed to win just one. One match had no result.
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Hope from Ashwani, Rohit and Suryakumar Must Fire
Mumbai Indians are also concerned about the injury of their star pacer Jasprit Bumrah. The Hardik Pandya-led side has remained silent on when Bumrah will return. Replacing him is not an easy task, but young left-arm pacer Ashwani Kumar has shown promise. In the last match against Kolkata Knight Riders, Ashwini impressed everyone by taking four wickets for just 24 runs.
The 23-year-old pacer from Punjab had played only four T20 matches in domestic cricket before making his IPL debut for Mumbai. He dismissed key batters like Ajinkya Rahane, Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh, and Andre Russell in his debut performance. Mumbai’s bowlers did well against Kolkata at Wankhede Stadium, but it was South African wicketkeeper-batsman Ryan Rickelton who helped them chase the target. To continue this momentum, Mumbai will need strong performances from Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav.
Lucknow Banks on Pooran
As for Lucknow, they started their IPL campaign with a disappointing one-wicket loss against Delhi Capitals in Visakhapatnam and have yet to perform at their full potential. The positive for them is that West Indian batsman Nicholas Pooran is in excellent form, having scored 189 runs in three matches. However, apart from Australian all-rounder Mitchell Marsh, no other Lucknow batsman has matched Pooran’s performance.
Lucknow’s biggest weaknesses are their bowling attack and Rishabh Pant’s inconsistent form. Several of their fast bowlers are injured, leaving Shardul Thakur and Ravi Bishnoi to lead the bowling department.
As both teams prepare for this crucial clash, Mumbai will rely on Rohit and Suryakumar, while Lucknow hopes for another match-winning performance from Pooran.
