Lucknow Super Giants suffered their fifth consecutive defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 as they were defeated by Kolkata Knight Riders in the Super Over on Sunday, April 26.
Rishabh Pant won the toss and invited Knights to bat first at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium. Mohsin Khan bowled brilliantly with the new ball and took three wickets. On the other hand, Angkrish Raghuvanshi was controversially given out for stopping the ball.
KKR looked to be in trouble at 31/4 in the seventh over. Cameron Green and Rinku Singh immediately revived the innings with a 42-run partnership. However, Mohsin dismissed Green and Anukul Roy on consecutive balls in the 11th over. Ramandeep Singh also died soon after, and it was all over Rinku Singh And Sunil Narine took KKR to a competitive total after being in a precarious position at 93/7 in 15 overs.
The duo added 62 runs in 30 balls, with Narine contributing only four runs in six balls. Rinku scored 56 runs in 24 balls in that partnership and hit four sixes in the last over bowled by Digvesh Rathi. The visitors finished at 155/7 in 20 overs.
In reply, Lucknow went back to the Aiden Markram-Mitchell March combination at the top of the order. However, Marsh departed early and was dismissed by Vaibhav Arora.
Aiden Markham and Rishabh Pant dug deep on a sluggish track and took their team to the target. However, Cameron Green broke the 57-run partnership in the 11th over, sending Markram back to the hut. Pant also failed to take advantage of his start and was out after scoring 42 runs.
Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni were sent packing by Varun Chakravarthy as KKR maintained their lead by taking wickets at regular intervals.
17 runs were needed in the last over, Mohammed Shami and Himmat Singh were at the crease. Shami managed to take a bye on the very first ball and reach the non-striker's end. The next two balls were beamers from Kartik Tyagi. Himmat hit a four on the second free hit but was out on the next ball.
The equation came down to seven runs needed on the last ball. Shami backed himself and bowled an over at long-off to take the match into the Super Over.
In the Super Over, Narine dismissed Puran on the first ball and Markram on the third ball. LSG managed to score only one run off the bat of Rishabh Pant. Rinku Singh and Rovman Powell came out to chase the modest target of two runs. Prince Yadav tried a yorker but could not execute it as Rinku hit it in-field and away from the sweeper, ending the match with a four.
talking points:
1. Mohsin Khan having fun in Ekana
Mohsin Khan looked in great form in the last game and went from strength to strength on Sunday. He broke the back of KKR's batting by taking the wickets of Ajinkya Rahane, Tim Seifert, Rovman Powell, Cameron Green and Anukul Roy. Mohsin took 5 wickets for 23 runs including one maiden over in four overs. This is his best figure and a record for taking five wickets for the first time in T20 cricket.
2. Rinku Singh shines with grit and determination
Rinku Singh was short of runs in the first game. However, in the last match, he was relieved by Nandre Berger, and since then, he has looked like a different batsman altogether. On Sunday, he played the role of anchor to perfection before shifting gears to the backend. He scored 83* runs in 55 balls with the help of seven fours and five sixes.
3. Sunil Narine – Super Over legend
Sunil Narine's record against Nicholas Pooran in the Super Over is excellent. In the Caribbean Premier League, he bowled a maiden over in the Super Over against a dangerous batsman. On Sunday, Narine needed only one ball to dismiss Puran. After taking a single off the next ball, the mystery spinner had Markram caught by Rinku after exemplary presence of mind from Rovman Powell at the boundary. Even in the match, Narine's spell of 1/23 in four overs kept LSG in the middle.
who said what
Rishabh Pant, Lucknow Super Giants captain:
(Your thoughts?) Look, I think we definitely need a break. I think we will be refreshed, there is always pressure and it will always be a game of pressure, but at the same time, we have to look for answers inside and not outside. And just keep it simple. Every person just has to take accountability. Like, it can't be about one or two people. It should be about the whole unit and a lot of people will definitely take responsibility for it. (Pooran is not in form, what was the thought process behind sending him) We discussed as a group, we discussed and the name came up Nicholas Pooran. He may not be in the best form of his life, but at the same time, you will trust your player in such a difficult situation. They are going to come out well. So, there is no excuse. Just looking at the positivity, there may not be enough positivity right now, but I think after the break, there will definitely be a lot of positivity. (Thoughts behind bowling to Digvesh Rathi?) Look, there are always times in cricket when you can make a few changes to the bowling at the same time. But sometimes bowlers have to bowl difficult overs. And there will be times when I have to give him that chance in the middle overs because I was looking for wickets. I haven't found one yet. This was the thought process behind it. And a lot of brains don't make it easy on the ground.
Ajinkya Rahane, Kolkata Knight Riders Captain:
Settled. Really happy with the win. The way we played after 16 overs, Rinku's innings was amazing. That last over and getting the momentum from our side was amazing. We played SMAT here and the soil was similar, we thought 160-170 would be a good score. But the kind of bowling we bowled was amazing. It was about that confidence, a wicket here and there and the opposition came back into the game, we were really confident with our spinners. We knew that one wicket would change the game for us. no not really. Sunil Narine was the option and it was not easy to hit the spinners to the long boundary. Tyagi has been really good, Vaibhav too.. all these Indian guys are doing well. But we should not take away credit from Rinku Singh. You have to be in the moment, using the long range is something we talked about and people are practicing it. As a bowler you have to be clear.
Rinku Singh, Player of the Match (translated from Hindi):
(Should we change your name to Rinku Sankatmochan) No, Rinku is fine. When I went to bat, four wickets had fallen, so I kept thinking how can I carry on and take the game to the end. Since we lost four wickets, it was about keeping the scoreboard going and keeping the loose balls away. I have liked fielding since childhood, I am fit and enjoy my fielding. I was not prepared, I thought he would complete the catch, but he bowled it long and I managed to hold on.
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