IPL 2025: Rishabh Pant admits they were 20 runs short against DC, adds toss plays a key role in Lucknow

Lucknow Super Giants captain Rishabh Pant admitted they were 20 runs short of a par score after suffering a eight-wicket loss against Delhi Capitals at Lucknow on Tuesday. Pant also acknowledged that batting becomes easier in the second innings at Lucknow and thus toss plays a key role.

But at the same time, Pant didn’t want to use it as an excuse. LSG posted a below-par score of 159 runs on the board as they failed to get any momentum into their innings.

LSG openers – Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh – scored 52 and 45 runs respectively but the middle order failed to deliver the goods. Ayush Badoni, the impact player, scored a crucial cameo of 36 runs off 21 balls after he was dropped on three by Tristan Stubbs.

Mukesh Kumar was the pick of the bowlers for DC, returning with impressive figures of 4-33. Kumar accounted for Mitchell Marsh, Abdul Samad, Ayush Badoni and Rishabh Pant in his fine spell.

On the other hand, Abishek Porel scored 51 runs whereas KL Rahul continued his rich form as he scored an unbeaten 57 to help his team get over the line.

“We knew we were 20 runs short,” admitted Pant. “In Lucknow, toss plays a big part. Whoever is bowling first, they get a lot of help from the wicket. We just had to stay back, we just couldn’t get it away.

“It always happens in Lucknow, in the second innings. The wicket gets better and better to bat on. That’s how the game goes and you can’t be complaining. Yes, toss is playing a huge part here, but as a team, we are not looking for excuses”

Pant batted at number seven and said they promoted Abdul Samad as they wanted to capitalize but couldn’t to do so. David Miller also meandered to 14 runs off 15 balls.

Pant concluded, “Idea was to like capitalize. We sent Samad to capitalize on a wicket like that. After that Miller came in and we just really got stuck in the wicket. Eventually, these are the things we got to figure out and try to find our best combination going forward.”

Lucknow Super Giants will next take on Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, on Sunday.