IPL 2023: 3 Key Match-Ups to Watch-Out in LSG VS SRH Match No.10

IPL 2023: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will host Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in match no.10 of the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023) on Friday, April 7 at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow. These two teams do not have a long history as they have played against each other only once, last year in the IPL. The Super Giants started their campaign with a 50-run win over David Warner’s Delhi Capitals before Chennai Super Kings handed them a 12-run defeat.

The only match played between the two teams last year went right down to the wire. With 16 runs to defend in the last over, Jason Holder gave away only three runs and took the Lucknow Super Giants home. A new look Sunrisers Hyderabad will look to avenge the 12-run defeat they suffered at the hands of LSG in their only match in the IPL history.

IPL 2023: Big Game for Both LSG & SRH

SRH started the tournament on a bad note as they were humiliated at home by Rajasthan Royals. The Orange Army lost their season opener by a huge margin of 72 runs. Heading into this game they will be strengthened by the return of their South African recruits- captain Aiden Markram, Heinrich Klaasen, and Marco Jansen.

After losing their last league game, Lucknow will be hoping to get back to winning ways at their home ground. In their last league game at home, LSG outplayed Delhi Capitals (DC) to claim the first and only win so far this season. Like SRH, the Lucknow-based team will welcome the regular member of their playing XI and second-highest run scorer for LSG in the 2022 season- Quinton de Kock. With quality players in both teams, let’s look at three key player battles to watch out for in the LSG vs SRH match.

IPL 2023: Top Player Battles to Keep an Eye On in LSG VS SRH Game:

3) Aiden Markram vs Ravi Bishnoi

The newly appointed SRH skipper Aiden Markram, who missed out on the first game of the season due to national duties, has joined the team and will be available to play the game against LSG. The in-form right-handed batter has been scoring runs for fun. After a disappointing last game for his team, he would be eager to make a mark in his first game as the captain of the team. With the top order filled, he is likely to bat in the middle order. Batting in the middle overs, he could face LSG’s ace leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi, who’s been in sensational form with the ball this season, claiming five wickets in the first two games. Markram has fallen prey to leggies 13 times in 37 T20 innings which makes this contest interesting.

2) Nicholas Pooran vs T. Natarajan

LSG’s most expensive buy- Nicholas Pooran has fared well till now in the tournament. He has smoked fiery thirties in the first two league games. Playing to his potential and reputation, Pooran has displayed his wide range of shots. When in full flow everyone knows how dangerous Pooran can be. He can be the difference maker in the end with his sensational striking while batting in the middle overs. SRH’s slog overs specialist T. Natarajan will have the responsibility to stop Pooran from taking the attack to the SRH bowlers. Natarajan has been a force to reckon with in middle and death overs and the Orange Army will bank on him to stop Pooran’s force. Pooran has scored 24 runs off 17 deliveries against Natarajan in the cash-rich league without being dismissed even once.

1) KL Rahul vs Bhuvneshwar Kumar 

Neither KL Rahul nor Bhuvneshwar Kumar has made an impressive start to this year’s IPL. While the former has failed in the two league games he took part in, the latter also couldn’t contribute to his team’s success in the first game against the Rajasthan Royals (RR). Hence, both senior players will have a point to prove. Rahul opens the batting for LSG and is one of their key batters. On the other hand, Bhuvneshwar is the leader of the pace attack and starts the proceedings with the new ball in the powerplay.

When these two veterans will come face to face in the first six overs, Rahul will have the responsibility to negotiate Bhuvneshwar’s swing while Bhuvneshwar will aim for the wicket of the LSG skipper. The right-arm pacer has only dismissed Rahul once in seven IPL meetings. However, the LSG opener owns a paltry strike rate of 116 in this battle.