🏏IPL 2026: LSG vs RR, 32nd Match, at Lucknow 🏏 - Page 6

Toss goes Pant's way - The two captains, Rishabh Pant and Riyan Parag are out in the middle for the TOSS. Pant, being the home captain, will flip the coin and Parag will call. Heads is the call but it is a Tail. Lucknow Super Giants elect to bowl first.

Staying really patient - One of the failing stars of Lucknow Super Giants, Nicholas Pooran, is up for a chat with the on-air broadcasters. On being asked about his batting form, he admits that it is going very well in the nets but not in the game when needed. Adds that he is staying really patient from his side. Says that T20 format can be consistent but it can get frustrating at times as well and adds that these are the kind of moments that challenge you as an individual to stay in the fight. On the specifics that he's been working on to elevate his game, Pooran just puts it down to being ready for the opportunity and following the right processes. Stresses that he needs to make that opportunity count in the game and do what's required for the team. About the conversations in the team to get that batting clicking, he starts by crediting the bowlers who have been in a good form. On the batting, he admits that they have been inconsistent and haven't achieved what they want so far. Details that they have made some changes in the batting lineup and is hopeful that will answer the questions and hopes that the batters take the responsibility as well. On the pitch, he says he hasn't yet looked at the pitch but expects it to be a good wicket with something in it for the bowlers early on. Stresses on being smart about reading the conditions.

aaj lagta hai phir zero milega

Playing XIs

Rajasthan Royals batting-first XI: 1 Yashasvi Jaiswal, 2 Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, 3 Dhruv Jurel (wk), 4 Riyan Parag (capt), 5 Shimron Hetmyer, 6 Donovan Ferreira, 7 Ravindra Jadeja, 8 Jofra Archer, 9 Ravi Bishnoi, 10 Nandre Burger, 11 Brijesh Sharma

Impact bench: Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Yashraj Punja, Shubham Dubey, Tushar Deshpande

Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Ayush Badoni, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Mohsin Khan, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Mayank Yadav

Impact bench: Himmat Singh, George Linde, Siddhartha M, Matthew Breetzke, Abdul Samad

Toss har gaye...

Match gaya

Bowlers won't be able to defend

Teams:

Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma, Nandre Burger

Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Ayush Badoni, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Mukul Choudhary, Mohammed Shami, Mohsin Khan, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Mayank Yadav

Crucial mid-season battle - Match 32 of the 2026 IPL season sees a clash between Lucknow Super Giants and Rajasthan Royals at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. With both teams trying to arrest mini-slumps, this encounter carries significant weight in shaping the points table dynamics. The Super Giants enter this fixture under pressure, currently languishing near the bottom half of the table and coming off three consecutive defeats.

Their latest setback was a heavy loss while chasing 250-plus, highlighting glaring issues in both bowling execution and finishing with the bat. Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, began the season strongly but have recently lost momentum with back-to-back defeats, slipping slightly despite still being among the top sides.

Looking for home comfort - Currently sitting 9th with only 2 wins from 6 games, Rishabh Pant’s side is almost in 'must-win' territory. The local fans are looking toward Mukul Choudhary, the breakout star of the season, to provide the late-inning fireworks. LSG’s primary concern with the bat is their middle order, as Nicholas Pooran and Rishabh Pant have both struggled for consistency, with strike rates uncharacteristically low for the duo.

With the ball, LSG had been the most economical side in this year's tournament, but in the last match, they conceded in excess of 250 runs, and that is a big worry. They might bring back Digvesh Singh in place of a pacer, but which one is a big question. Mohammad Shami is picking up wickets early on, and Prince Yadav has been fantastic during all phases. Avesh Khan is their death-over specialist, and Mohsin Khan only returned to the team in the previous game, showing glimpses of brilliance, but one does feel it will have to be one of the Khans if Digvesh does return to the XI.

A bid to avoid a slump - Under the captaincy of Riyan Parag, RR have looked clinical, holding a spot in the top four of the points table despite suffering a couple of defeats in their last two games. The team underwent a massive transformation in the off-season, losing Sanju Samson to CSK but gaining the experience of Ravindra Jadeja. The opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal and teen sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi has been the most explosive in the Powerplay this year.

The biggest problem for the Royals in the two defeats has been that their batting order has faltered, failing to breach the 160-run barrier. In the match against SRH, RR were reduced to a shocking 9/5, but in their last game against KKR, the first wicket fell when the score was 81 in the 9th and still their middle order couldn't capitalise at all. The bowling has been pretty well-rounded thus far, and the presence of Ravi Bishnoi will certainly help the Royals as he knows all about the somewhat treacherous Lucknow pitch.

Pitch and conditions - The pitch at the Ekana Stadium is generally less batter-friendly than all the other venues we see in this competition. It starts off having some good purchase for the pacer but slows down significantly around the 6-8 over mark, which brings the spinners into play big time. In terms of the weather, clear skies are expected with temperatures in and around the 35-degree Celsius mark. Also, the dew factor isn't expected to play a substantial role, which should offer a good chance of the team batting first to defend the total.

I am told I am going to lose the toss - Cheeky, aye? Well, that's exactly what Rajasthan Royals' captain, Riyan Parag said, when asked about what would he have done had he won the toss!

Originally posted by: DiamondLife

Toss har gaye...

Match gaya

Bowlers won't be able to defend

You are supporting RR, right ? Match kyun gaya? If RR scores 200 then ?