With only six overseas players in their roster, LSG’s management could be in for a challenging time
S Sudarshanan20-Mar-20254:10
Moody: ‘Tantalising thought to have Pant and Pooran batting together’
Where they finished last yearSeventh. Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) started with three wins in their first four IPL 2024 matches, but couldn’t win more than two in a row after that. They had the lowest net run-rate (-0.667) among the four teams that finished with 14 points, with the best of the quartet making the playoffs.What’s new in IPL 2025Ahead of the last mega auction, LSG let go of KL Rahul, who had led them to two playoffs in 2022 and 2023, their first IPL two seasons. Rishabh Pant, purchased for a record IPL auction fee of INR 27 crore, has since been named captain. LSG’s first game of IPL 2025 is against Pant’s former team, Delhi Capitals (DC), in Visakhapatnam.Related
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New recruits Aiden Markram and Shahbaz Ahmed are vying for middle-order spots alongside the retained pair of Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni. Fresh picks David Miller and Abdul Samad are the finishing options. LSG also have Matthew Breetzke, who struck 150 for South Africa on ODI debut, as a back-up opener. Mitchell Marsh, who has been cleared to play IPL 2025 as a batter only, could be the preferred opener. But that could leave LSG an allrounder or spare bowler short.The bowling attack is very Indian. Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan (both retained), Avesh Khan and Akash Deep were expected to shoulder fast-bowling responsibilities, but are all recovering from injuries. That could push Prince Yadav (the leading wicket-taker for Delhi in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy), Akash Singh and Rajvardhan Hangargekar to the fore, though that might not strike too much fear in the hearts of oppositions. That leaves only the retained Ravi Bishnoi as a certain starter among the bowlers.Rishabh Pant became the most expensive buy ever at an IPL auction•Lucknow Super GiantsLSG are one of two teams – Rajasthan Royals are the other – with only six overseas players, the fewest among all teams, and the staff, including new mentor Zaheer Khan, will have a job to do.Likely best XII1 Yuvraj Chaudhary/Arshin Kulkarni, 2 Mitchell Marsh*, 3 Nicholas Pooran*, 4 Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), 5 Ayush Badoni, 6 David Miller*, 7 Abdul Samad, 8 Shahbaz Ahmed, 9 Rajvardhan Hangargekar, 10 Ravi Bishnoi, 11 Shamar Joseph*, 12 Akash Singh/Prince Yadav
Full LSG squadBig questionWatch out forIn the 20 matches India played since winning the T20 World Cup last year, Pant appeared in just two, with the focus being on Test cricket, rest and recovery. Sanju Samson’s form as opener and wicketkeeper has made him the go-to in the India team, for now. With LSG missing an established Indian opener in their squad, Pant could move towards the top of the order, with one eye on India ambitions. Of his IPL batting positions between Nos. 3 and 5, it is at No. 3 that he has the best average (39.36) and strike-rate (169.14), although the sample size is only 13 innings.The other opening options, if Marsh or Markram are preferred, are Arshin Kulkarni and Yuvraj Chaudhary. Kulkarni opened for LSG in the two games he played last season and was Maharashtra’s leading run-scorer in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024. Chaudhary made a splash in the Uttarakhand Premier League 2024 at the top of the order, striking at 192.80 and averaging 80.5. At the SMAT, Chaudhary was also Uttarakhand’s leading run-scorer with 234 runs, including a century, at a strike rate of 168.34. Both also offer some bowling – Kulkarni with his medium pace and Chaudhary with his left-arm spin.LSG could be hampered by the unavailability of their fast-bowling core in Mayank, Mohsin and Avesh (at least for some chunks of the tournament). That leaves their bowling vulnerable. It also points towards surfaces in Lucknow likely being spin-friendly.Questions around Mayank Yadav’s fitness remain•BCCIKey stats LSG’s home venue, the Ekana Stadium, has the lowest average score in the last three seasons of the IPL. Since the T20 World Cup 2024, Bishnoi has picked up the second-most wickets for India in T20Is. Shahbaz scored his maiden T20 hundred this season in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and had a strike rate of 176.86 in the tournament, the best for Bengal, primarily batting at Nos. 5 and 6. He also returned seven wickets, the most by a spinner for them.Who’s out or in doubt?LSG would have hoped for all-round balance from Marsh. But he has been cleared to play as a batter alone as he is returning from a back injury and could be their impact player. LSG’s first-choice bowling attack is also a bit brittle. Mohsin has an ACL injury, which he picked up during the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Mayank has been ruled out of the first half of IPL 2025 owing to a back injury. Avesh is recovering from a knee injury. Akash Deep is recovering from a back injury that ruled him out of the New Year’s Test in Australia.Shardul Thakur and Shivam Mavi have been at the LSG training camp, but are yet to be drafted in officially as injury replacements.