To guarantee their postseason berth, Royal Challengers Bengaluru must win one more game, and it would be quite poetic if it were in Lucknow. In addition to the fact that the city’s motto is “make visitors smile,” RCB’s success this season has been primarily predicated on away games, as evidenced by their six wins out of six. In their first season under a new captain, a seventh will complete their undefeated road run and lead them to knockouts.
The equation is more complicated for the Lucknow Super Giants. With three games left with 10 points in 11 games so far, they are in a must-win situation since 14 points won’t be enough to get teams through this season. LSG would still have to rely on other outcomes to go their way even if they won every game. The fact that two of their next three games are at home, where they have had difficulty adjusting, is hardly comforting, as three defeats in five games would indicate.
LSG appears to have lost their key components from the previous season and are coming off three straight losses, while RCB finally seems to have found the middle order and bowling to win games as a team. Specifically, their fast bowling, which helped them win games on their own last year, has fallen short. After 58 games, the injury-plagued pace unit, which started the season as the least experienced, still has the second-worst average (38.03) and is the most costly fast-bowling attack (ER 10.64). This feels like low-hanging fruit for an in-form RCB because of it and Rishabh Pant’s bad play.
However, you never know what can happen in a close league finish, and a victory would keep the hosts in the competition. However, RCB has much bigger goals in mind.
When: LSG v RCB, Match 59, IPL 2025, on 9 May, 07:30 PM LOCAL
Where: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
What to expect: The long boundaries are provided, so spinners will have something to work with, but a lot relies on whether the soil pitch is red or black. Expect the captain to win the toss to bowl first because the chasing teams have won four of the five games.
Head to head: RCB 3-2 LSG
Team Watch
Lucknow Super Giants
Injuries/availability concerns: No reported injuries in the squad.
Tactics and matchups: Can Mayank Yadav be used by LSG as a first- or second-change bowler? He performed the role admirably the previous season, but in his two appearances as a new-ball bowler this year, he has returned 2-100 in his first eight overs.
Probable XII:Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Abdul Samad, Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Akash Maharaj Singh/Ravi Bishnoi, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Mayank Yadav, Prince Yadav
Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Injuries/availability concerns:Devdutt Padikkal, a “key part of the top order” in Mo Bobat’s words, has been ruled out with a hamstring injury. He has been replaced by Mayank Agarawal, who should slot right in given his experience. It remains to be seen if Josh Hazlewood (who missed the CSK fixture in Bengaluru with a shoulder niggle) and Phil Salt (who missed the last two fixtures with fever) are available for this match, which is after a five-day break.
Tactics and matchups: After hitting two fifties in his first three games of the season, Patidar’s explosive form has now subsided. Patidar has only scored 30 runs in his last four games. He will probably gain confidence by playing against LSG, the team against which he hit a century off of 49 balls in the 2022 Eliminator, albeit it’s by no means a cause for alarm.
Probable XII:Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarawal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Lungi Ngidi/Josh Hazlewood, Yash Dayal, Suyash Sharma
Did you know?
– Of the 72 players to have faced at least 60 balls in IPL 2025, Rishabh Pant has the lowest strike-rate and the lowest average.
– When these two teams met last year in Bengaluru, Mayank Yadav picked 3/14 and bowled the fastest ball of the season at 156.7 kmph.
What they said:
“I haven’t made any changes to my bowling. I’ve had a major injury, I’ve been out of the game for 5-6 months. So, it’s normal, the body will adapt and it’ll take it’s own time. So I feel, I should give my body some time for that speed to come back.” – Mayank Yadav
“My process is that I can control my nerves in the pre-match [routines].I don’t try to think about the things that are not in my control. After what happened to me in 2023 [five sixes], I try to focus on the process and not on the batters. I try to focus on the execution. I have practised a lot. Now it looks like the results are coming through” – Yash Dayal.
