Lucknow Super Giants upset Punjab Kings by 20 runs in their Indian Premier League 2022 match at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Friday, thanks to a coordinated bowling attack.
Krunal Pandya was outstanding in the middle overs, putting Punjab under pressure with a high-class spell of 2/11 from four overs. Dushmantha Chameera was also brilliant, grabbing 2/17, while Mohsin Khan, a left-arm pacer, returned with figures of 3/24.
When asked to bat first, Lucknow had top-order contributions from Quinton de Kock (46 off 37) and Deepak Hooda (34 off 28), but their middle order faltered, resulting in a below-par total of 153/8.
Kagiso Rabada was the standout of the Punjab bowlers, taking 4/38 from four overs and dismissing skipper KL Rahul, Pandya, Ayush Badoni, and Chameera.
In response, captain Mayank Agarwal was dismissed for 25 runs off 17 balls, but Punjab were in a strong position at 46/1 at the end of the power play.
Ravi Bishnoi, on the other hand, removed the experienced Shikhar Dhawan (5 off 15) in the seventh over before Krunal Pandya removed the dangerous Bhanuka Rajapaksa in the next over. Bishnoi was struck for a few of sixes by Liam Livingstone, but he died soon after.
Punjab's No 3 batsman, Jonny Bairstow, held the key, but the right-hander was dismissed for 32 from 28 in the 16th over, putting the game firmly in Lucknow's hands. Rishi Dhawan (21* off 22) got off to a poor start before hitting a few boundaries, but it wasn't enough.