MATCH STORIES 
Follow UsNew season, same story.
Since 2022, Lucknow Super Giants have the lowest win percentage while chasing (31.2%) among all teams. And they have begun the 2024 season on a similar note - falling short in a chase by a good margin of 20 runs.
But let's put the result aside. It was a tough chase on a tricky pitch against one of the better bowling attacks of the season. But don’t lose the focus from their approach and batting order - a common pattern in most of these flunked chases.
The management has changed. Justin Langer has replaced Andy Flower as the head coach of the side, with ex mentor Gautam Gambhir shifting bases to Kolkata. However, the defeat on March 24 (Sunday) highlighted that the questionable approach could potentially continue.
To begin with, KL Rahul raised a few eyebrows when he walked out to open alongside Quinton de Kock. For all the rumors that Rahul will move out of his comfort zone and bat in the middle order (which he last did in IPL 2016) to make a case in India’s T20 World Cup squad, he stuck to his tried-and-tested methods.
ALSO READ: Will KL Rahul move to the middle-order for LSG to push his T20WC case?
Rahul taking the opening slot pushed Devdutt Padikkal to number three, a spot below his best batting position. Padikkal at three didn’t cost LSG much today as he was out to bat in the first over itself and was dismissed for a duck soon after.
But LSG promoted Ayush Badoni to number four and then Deepak Hooda to five. It was a consequence of the side losing three wickets in the powerplay. It was clear they wanted Nicholas Pooran to show up only after the powerplay was done and bat as a spin basher. Royal Challengers Bangalore follow a similar approach with Glenn Maxwell. But they have never sent him below number five.
The problem with LSG’s move was that when Pooran walked out to bat at six, he had fewer batters to follow him, meaning he had to modify his batting approach. When Pooran walked out to bat, the asking rate was 10.9. In his first 10 balls, the southpaw scored only 11 runs. And since there was no acceleration at the other end as well from Rahul, the asking rate kept rising.
In a similar vein, Marcus Stoinis, who batted at seven in this game, has been restricted to the finisher’s role. It reminded of Stoinis’ LSG debut two years ago when the preceding management sent him in at number eight.
In this fixture, when the Big Stoin walked out to bat, the asking rate was 12.3 with less than four overs left. Next over, he was out looking to clear the fence.
Over the last couple of years, Stoinis has adapted well to a middle-order role. Yet, he has batted a heavy chunk of his innings at five, allowing him time to go hard in the death overs. LSG’s fascination with delaying his entry point has reduced his chances of success as a batter.
Moreover, to accommodate these moves, LSG had to stack their domestic Indian batters in the upper middle order. Rahul and Pooran kept the Super Giants alive in the chase with their 85-run stand but the side never got their nose ahead.
In their brief history, LSG have never had a settled batting order. This is due to their obsession with match-ups, which has consistently forced them to juggle their batters around. It has led to mismanagement of resources, reducing the impact of their premier batters, leading to plenty of failed run chases.
