NEW DELHI: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) find themselves in a precarious position in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 after succumbing to a 37-run defeat against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the HPCA Stadium on Sunday.
The loss marks LSG’s sixth of the season, leaving them seventh on the points table with 10 points from 11 games. With just three league matches remaining, they now face a must-win scenario to stay alive in the playoff race.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!Following the high-scoring clash, LSG skipper Rishabh Pant did not mince words as he pointed to dropped catches as the turning point of the game. “Definitely too many runs. When you're gonna drop crucial catches at the wrong time, it is going to hurt you badly,” Pant said in the post-match presentation.
Who's that IPL player?Pant further reflected on the match, highlighting that LSG had misjudged the conditions early on and failed to adapt swiftly. “We thought it was going to do more. We didn't pick the length right at the start. That's part and parcel of the game,” he said. “The dream is still alive. If we're gonna win the next three matches, we definitely can turn it around.”
Sent in to bat, PBKS posted a daunting 236/5, powered by a blistering 91 off 48 balls from Prabhsimran Singh. He stitched crucial partnerships with skipper Shreyas Iyer (45) and Shashank Singh (33*) to pile pressure on LSG. Despite late fightbacks from Ayush Badoni (74) and Abdul Samad (45), LSG managed only 199/7 in reply.
Pant acknowledged lack of support to the top order. “In every match, you can't hope they will come off nicely… We need to take the game deep. Every time, they can't do the heavy job for us,” he said.
With PBKS rising to second place with 15 points, LSG will need to fix their fielding lapses and deliver flawless performances in their final three games to remain in the hunt.
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