Stoinis special lifts LSG into third

The Lucknow Super Giants edged out the Mumbai Indians by five runs in a high-stakes clash at the Ekana Stadium in the race for the playoff positions. Marcus Stoinis slammed an IPL career-high score of 89* off 47 to lift LSG to a competitive total of 177 for 3 on a difficult surface before Mohsin Khan delivered a masterclass in death bowling, defending 11 runs off the final over against Cameron Green and Tim David to give the hosts a narrow five-run win.

Lucknow’s win takes them above Mumbai into third in the table, and another win in their final group fixture against Kolkata can guarantee their place in the final four.

The Super Giants hosted Mumbai in Lucknow on the back of four consecutive defeats at home, and Krunal Pandya’s side fell behind the eight ball early on after being put into bat by Rohit Sharma. Deepak Hooda replaced Kyle Mayers at the top of the order for Lucknow, but the plan failed, with the opener skying one to Tim David in the second over. Fresh of a match-winning half-century in Hyderabad, Prerak Mankad departed for a golden duck, nicking off to Ishan Kishan, while Piyush Chawla removed de Kock to pick up his 20th wicket of the season.

De Kock’s dismissal left Lucknow in a spot of bother at 35 for 3, forcing Krunal Pandya and Marcus Stoinis to rebuild the innings patiently. With boundaries hard to come by, the pair pierced the gaps and ran hard between the wickets to keep the scoreboard ticking, taking Lucknow to 108 for 3 in 15 overs to set up a grand finish. Krunal hobbled off with an injury on 49 to end the 82-run stand, but Stoinis stayed till the end to take LSG to a winning score.

The Australian stepped on the accelerator against Chris Jordan in the 17th over, smashing the Englishman for five boundaries and 24 runs to change the momentum of the contest. The all-rounder also creamed Jason Behrendorff for consecutive sixes and slammed 44 runs off his final 12 deliveries to finish with an IPL-best 89* off 47.

Chasing 178, Mumbai enjoyed a promising powerplay as Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan displayed aggressive intent inside the first six overs. The Indian duo went hard against the Lucknow new ball attack, taking 58 runs in the powerplay. The introduction of spin through the middle brought the inevitable slowdown, with Ravi Bishnoi removing both openers in consecutive overs and Krunal Pandya conceding just 27 in his spell.

Mumbai’s troubles compounded with SKY ramping one onto his stumps with 63 needed off 36 deliveries and Nehal Wadhera labouring his way to a 20-ball 16 before holing out in the deep. Tim David kept Mumbai in the contest by smashing Naveen-ul-Haq for two sixes in a 19-run penultimate over to set up a thrilling finish. However, Mohsin Khan held his nerve at the death, mixing up his lengths and nailing his yorkers to neutralize Tim David and Cameron Green’s firepower, handing Lucknow a terrific win by just five runs.