🏏IPL 2025,M40 LSG vs DC on Apr22nd @Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow 🏏

IPL 2025 – Match 40: Lucknow Super Giants vs Delhi Capitals | April 22, 7:30 PM IST | Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow

Lucknow have built some decent momentum of late as they have won four out of their last five matches. While Rishabh Pant might have struggled with the bat, he has led the side commendably. The Super Giants are placed at No. 5 on the points table with 10 points in their kitty.

Meanwhile, Delhi Capitals have had a fantastic campaign so far. They have won five games out of the seven that they have played in IPL 2025 under new captain Axar Patel. However, their two defeats have come in the last three games. The Capitals would not want to lose momentum as the tournament heads towards the business end.

The Capitals and the Super Giants played a riveting encounter earlier in the tournament. Ashutosh Sharma's brilliance in the closing stages of the match helped DC snatch victory from the jaws of defeat as they chased down a 210-run target with one wicket and three balls to spare.

Preview

It's close to a month now since Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals last faced off against each other in Vizag, producing a thriller with DC getting over the line with a wicket and three balls to spare thanks to Ashutosh Sharma's heroics. That was the first of four successive wins for DC but they have blown hot and cold in the last few games, losing against Mumbai Indians and Gujarat Titans while prevailing in the Super Over against Rajasthan Royals.

LSG have also been inconsistent but they are placed among the top five thanks to more wins than losses. They too are fresh off a narrow two-run win against the Royals, which was only possible due to a late fightback with the ball from Avesh Khan. A couple of failures for Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran has meant the batting has lacked early momentum, exacerbated by Rishabh Pant's poor run of scores (notwithstanding his 49-ball 63 against Chennai Super Kings). While they have won five out of eight matches, LSG will be hoping for a more collective batting show going forward.

For DC too, the top order batters need to convert their starts into bigger contributions, with the team having gone without an individual fifty-plus score in their last two games. While the bowlers, especially Mitchell Starc, helped them get away with a fine last over and an effective Super Over against RR, a stronger batting performance from GT meant DC's 203 wasn't sufficient. Like LSG, they'll be hoping for the top three to provide the ideal foundation.

When: Tuesday, April 22 at 7:30 PM IST

Where: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow

What to expect: A 200-plus total has been posted only once this season in Lucknow, with LSG defending it successfully. But the other three games have been won by chasing sides, with a target of 181 being the highest successful chase at this venue this season. Teams will be aiming to post over 190 if they happen to bat first here, while chasing will be the preferred option.

Head to head: It's an even 3-3 split between LSG and DC, with a win apiece for both teams at Ekana.

Team watch

Lucknow Super Giants

Injury/Unavailability: Mayank Yadav was one among LSG's substitutes in the previous game, perhaps an indication that he is closer to match fitness. Should he be available for the game against DC, Prince Yadav might have to make way.

Tactics & match-ups: Shardul Thakur could prove useful against Axar Patel, having dismissed him twice in six innings. KL Rahul and Abishek Porel have been dismissed twice each by legspinners this season, bringing Digvesh Singh Rathi and Ravi Bishnoi into play.

Probable XII: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), David Miller, Abdul Samad, Ravi Bishnoi, Shardul Thakur, Prince Yadav / Mayank Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Ayush Badoni

Delhi Capitals

Injury/Unavailability: Faf du Plessis is unlikely to be back for this encounter, with DC skipper Axar having indicated after the match against RR that the South African is likely to miss three more matches. DC could, meanwhile, consider bringing in Dushmantha Chameera considering his familiarity with Lucknow and his good match-up against Pooran (3 dismissals in 4 innings).

Tactics & match-ups: Axar hasn't been at his best with the ball this season, with just one wicket so far and an economy of 9.36. With Pooran and David Miller having strike rates of 350 and 150 respectively against Axar, DC might use their captain early in the innings, especially against Aiden Markram who has been dismissed by the left-hander twice in five innings. Meanwhile, Kuldeep Yadav has a positive match-up against Pooran, Pant and Marsh, and DC will be banking on the wrist spinner to do the bulk of the damage.

Probable XII: Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (c), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohit Sharma/Dushmantha Chameera, Mukesh Kumar, Donovan Ferreira

Big picture: KL Rahul against his former side

Last IPL, KL Rahul was into his third season at Lucknow Super Giants. Up until the point they had to face Sunrisers Hyderabad, things were going okay. And then in one night - actually in just 9.4 overs - everything broke. Live visuals of the LSG team owner chastising his own captain went around the world. There was no coming back from that.

Rahul is with a different team now and his meeting with Sanjiv Goenka would've happened sooner, but he missed the first time Delhi Capitals played LSG for the birth of his child. Former players coming back to hurt their old teams has been a theme in IPL 2025; Rahul has had a piece of that action already when he made a match-winning 93 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Will he be similarly motivated on Tuesday night?

LSG replaced Rahul with Rishabh Pant and he is still finding his way. The new captain has scored only 106 runs in seven innings. But despite his low returns, injuries to their bowling attack, and starting with a loss against DC, LSG seem to have exceeded expectations. They have won five of their last seven games, including four really tight ones. A win in Lucknow would help LSG displace DC at No. 2 on the points table.

Form guide

Lucknow Super Giants: WLWWW (last five matches, most recent first)

Delhi Capitals: LWLWW

In the spotlight: Abdul Samad and Mitchell Starc

Playing as a finisher for LSG, Abdul Samad has scored 111 runs at a strike rate of 222. In their last game, Samad smacked Sandeep Sharma for four sixes in the final over to finish with 30 off just 10 balls. Earlier in the season, Samad also successfully went after Arshdeep Singh, Harshal Patel and Adam Zampa. With all the attention on LSG's top three and on Pant, it is Samad who has propelled his side from down the order.

With an economy rate of 10.68, Mitchell Starc is the second-most expensive bowler among those who've bowled at least 25 overs this season. He had started with eight wickets in two games, but has struck only twice in five matches since. But last week, it was primarily due to Starc's reverse-swinging yorkers that DC first forced Rajasthan Royals into a tie, before winning the Super Over.

Team news: Will Mayank Yadav finally play?

Mayank Yadav was fit for LSG's previous game, against RR, and started as an Impact Sub option. But three early wickets batting first meant LSG tapped Ayush Badoni instead. It's likely he'll be returning to action tomorrow.

Lucknow Super Giants (probable): 1 Aiden Markram, 2 Mitchell Marsh, 3 Nicholas Pooran, 4 Ayush Badoni, 5 Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), 6 David Miller, 7 Abdul Samad, 8 Shardul Thakur, 9 Ravi Bishnoi, 10 Prince Yadav/Mayank Yadav, 11 Digvesh Rathi, 12 Avesh Khan

The injured Faf du Plessis is recovering well, and hit the nets for a batting session, but nothing has been decided on his inclusion yet.

Delhi Capitals (probable): 1 Abishek Porel, 2 Faf du Plessis/Donovan Ferreira/Sameer Rizvi, 3 Karun Nair, 4 KL Rahul (wk), 5 Axar Patel (capt), 6 Tristan Stubbs, 7 Ashutosh Sharma, 8 Vipraj Nigam, 9 Mitchell Starc, 10 Kuldeep Yadav, 11 Mohit Sharma, 12 Mukesh Kumar

The big question

LSG's Digvesh Rathi and DC's Vipraj Nigam are two Indian youngsters who have made a name for themselves this IPL. Numbers wise, there isn't much to separate them: while Rathi has bagged nine wickets at an average of 26.44, Nigam has seven wickets at 27. Expect one or both of them to have a say if the pitch in Lucknow helps spinners.

Pitch and conditions

It will be a red-soil pitch at Ekana Stadium on Tuesday. LSG had played Punjab Kings (PBKS) on the same kind of surface earlier this season, and lost by eight wickets. After that game, LSG's mentor Zaheer Khan was left so frustrated he said "it looked like, you know, it was Punjab curator out here".

Did you know?

- DC have already used four different opening pairs this season but haven't found a solution to their opening problems yet. Their average opening partnership of 21.28 is the lowest among the 10 teams

- Since 2024, Rishabh Pant has been dismissed by spinners eight times in the IPL. This season, he has scored only 32 runs off 45 balls against spin, with a strike rate of 71.11 and a dot ball percentage of 50

- In the last two seasons, Mohit Sharma was effective in the death overs (16-20), bagging 22 wickets collectively in this phase. He is yet to pick up a wicket in the death overs this season