In an away match, Shreyas Iyer-led Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) faced KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the 54th match of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024) at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari. Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Sunday, May 5.
After being asked to bat first, KKR ensured that LSG were punished for the decision. Brutal innings of 81 runs from Sunil Narine and good contributions from other batters took KKR to a massive total of 235/6.
The Kolkata Knight Riders bowling team defended the total and played their best game by defeating the Lucknow Super Giants by 137 in 16.1 overs to register a 98-run win. Harshit Rana and Varun Chakravarthy picked up three wickets each while Andre Russell (2), Mitchell Starc (1) and Sunil Narine (1) were also among the wickets.
At the post-match presentation ceremony, Shreyas Iyer spoke about his series of toss losses and said that there was chaos in the KKR association as everyone was asking him about the toss losses. Shreyas Iyer said:
“The last six games in the locker room have been devastating. Teammates come in and ask Skip what’s going on. We lose shots but we win games, that’s the important thing.”
Shreyas Iyer further spoke about the opening duo of Sunil Narine and Phil Salt and stated that the duo plays good cricket and lays the foundation for big overall results. Shreyas Iyer explained:
“We had a great start on the power play. A left-right combination makes it difficult for the opponent. It’s about the freedom to go out and express yourself. We want to go out and be positive no matter what the situation is, sometimes it doesn’t work, but sometimes it does. They were great for us, the way they played their shots is pure bliss. They give us momentum and no matter what the situation is, we play with a positive mindset.”
Lucknow Super Giants vs Kolkata Knight Riders: Head to Head Record
Shreyas Iyer & Co. started their second IPL 2024 match against Lucknow Super Giants with a poor direct record. They trailed 1-3 in the four matches played between the teams, with their first win over the Lucknow-based franchise coming on April 14, 2024, by 8 wickets with 26 balls remaining.
Lucknow Super Giants joined the Indian Premier League in 2022 and played against Kolkata Knight Riders twice this season. In the first match on May 7, LSG defeated KKR by 75 runs and Avesh Khan (3/19) bagged the Player of the Match award. In the second game on May 18, LSG won again, but this time a very close game by two runs, with Quinton de Kock winning the PoTM for his exceptional and unbeaten knock of 140 runs.
The clash between LSG and KKR also happened once in IPL 2023 and it was an absolute nail-biter that was decided by LSG by a single run with Nicholas Pooran (58) winning the Player of the Match award.
Meanwhile, now after the conclusion of the second match of the Indian Premier League 2024 between Lucknow Super Giants and Kolkata Knight Riders, the head-to-head record stands at LSG 3-2 KKR.