IPL 2025 Venue Analysis: Will Lucknow Continue To Be A Haven For Bowlers?

The Ekana Stadium is all set for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, as the home team, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), will take on the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Tuesday, April 1, 2025. Over the last two years, the venue has made an identity of its own as a sluggish, slow track with a lot of assistance for the bowlers.

The toss has had a minimal impact in last two seasons as teams have almost a 50:50 record batting first or chasing. The average first innings score of 169 is one of the lowest scores for a venue in IPL over the last two years. 

Being called a bowler’s heaven, both pacers and spinners have found help in the wicket at the Ekana Stadium. Spinners have a terrific economy of 7.3, which is the best in any venue. The Pacers, too, have taken wickets at a decent rate. 

Batters had a tough time playing in Lucknow in IPL 2023, as it was tough to stay on the crease and adjust to the conditions. This resulted in the run rate in the 2023 season being just 6.9. 

In the 2024 edition, the batters did well, scoring at an 8.4 run rate, with 14 fifties, and averaging almost 30. 

Over the last two years, the Lucknow pitch has been the toughest to bat on, resulting in the lowest run rate at a venue in the IPL.

The batters have been able to slog freely during the final five overs as wickets have fallen almost every 6th ball in this phase. Boundary hitting has taken a massive hit as 54.4% boundary percentage is the lowest at a venue in IPL since 2023.

Pacers have had some sort of relief bowling in Lucknow after being hammered in every other venue. They have maintained an excellent economy of 8.6 which is the lowest for them at any venue. 

Spinners had a season to remember in 2023, as the batters danced to their tunes and failed to read the ball. They took 41 wickets at a spectacular average of just 20.4. 

In the 2024 season, the pitch did not assist as much as the previous season, resulting in them conceding at 8.1 runs per over, with the average going up to 33.5, taking almost half of the wickets. 

Bowlers had a better record in all three phases in the 2023 season, maintaining less than 30 bowling averages across phases. In the 2024 edition, all three phases saw a decent improvement in run scoring.