IMAGES from the Indian Premier League match between Lucknow Super Giants and Gujarat Titans, in Lucknow, on Sunday.
All-rounder Marcus Stoinis's fine half-century was complimented brilliantly by pacer Yash Thakur's fifer as Lucknow Super Giants scored a comfortable 33-run victory over Gujarat Titans in the IPL match in Lucknow on Sunday evening.
Opting to bat, LSG rode on Stoinis's 58 off 43 balls and his 73-run stand off 62 balls with skipper K L Rahul (33 off 31) for the third wicket to post 163 for 5.
Nicholas Pooran scored 32 off 22 balls to boost LSG's total considerably.
It was a torrid chase for Gujarat Titans as Thakur (5/30) and Krunal Pandya (3/11) shared eight wickets to bowl them out for 130 in 18.5 overs.
Opener B Sai Sudharsan (31 off 23) opened up his arms in the second over and struck Naveen-ul-Haq for two boundaries in the second over.
Sudharsan was at his attacking best as he caressed pace sensation Mayank Yadav past mid-off off his first delivery. He followed that up with another four through midwicket.
If that was not enough GT skipper Shubman Gill (19) struck another four to end Mayank's over, which yielded 13 runs.
Mayank, who impressed all by bowling 150 kmph thunderbolts consistently in the last two games, couldn't even touch 140 kmph on Sunday night and left the field with a side strain after his first over.
He did not return to the field thereafter.
Gill, however, didn't last long as he was cleaned up by Thakur in the sixth over.
While Sudharsan held one end up, wickets kept tumbling at the other in the form of Kane Williamson, who hit a tossed up delivery from Ravi Bishnoi straight back to the spinner.
Krunal struck twin blows in the ninth over to peg back GT's chase.
He first ended Sudharsan's entertaining knock, as the batter top-edged one to Bishnoi at deep mid-wicket and then three balls later accounted for B R Sharath as Gujarat Titans slumped to 61 for 4.
Krunal continued to trouble GT as Darshan Nalkande was his next victim, caught by Thakur at short-fine leg, after he went for a big shot.
Vijay Shankar scored a run-a-ball 17 but it was not enough as GT simply couldn't forge substantial partnerships.
Tewatia (30 off 25) also played a good hand but it came too late.
Earlier, all-rounder Stoinis scored a fine fifty, his first in this edition of the tournament, while Pooran played a cameo towards the end to guide Lucknow Super Giants to 163 for 5.
Opting to bat, LSG rode on Stoinis's 58 off 43 balls and his 73-run stand off 62 balls with skipper Rahul (33 off 31) for the third wicket.
Towards the end, Pooran scored 32 off 22 balls to help his side's cause.
It was an eventful first over from Umesh Yadav (2/22) as, after being dispatched over deep backward square leg boundary by in-form Quinton de Kock off the second ball of the innings, he got his man a delivery later.
De Kock went for a similar shot, got an outside edge and Noor Ahmad took a smart catch at third man.
Off he first ball of his next over, Umesh was pulled by Devdutt Padikkal to the square leg fence but the pacer got his revenge, inducing an outside edge from the left-hander and Vijay Shankar made no mistake at slip as LSG slid to 18 for 2 in the third over.
Rahul, however, went about his business in quiet fashion, plucking three boundaries off Spencer Johnson with delightful strokes through the square and straight down the ground to pick up 13 runs off the fourth over.
Rahul found an able ally in Stoinis as they played cautiously, dispatching bad deliveries to the fence to form the partnership and stabilize LSG's innings.
Rahul was in great touch but just when he looked to spice up the run-rate, the right-hander perished. He went for a huge heave down the ground off Darshan Nalkande that was in the slot, but mistimed the hit and Rahul Tewatia took a fine catch at long-on in the 13th over.
Stoinis got a reprieve on 43 and the Australian cashed in on the chance with both hands, clobbering Nalkande over his head for a maximum and in the process brought up his fifty in 40 balls.
Stoinis then cleared Nalkande over wide long on for another six but the young bowler had the last laugh as he got his man the next ball, caught by wicketkeeper B R Sharath as the batter went for another maximum.
Pooran provided the final flourish to LSG's innings with some strong hits.
