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Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) have a win and a defeat after playing two matches. Some things have worked in their favour, some haven’t. But fortunately for them, so far, the former outnumber the latter. Take Shardul Thakur, for instance. He had no business being the mainsail for the team after being drafted in as a replacement player following Mohsin Khan’s ACL tear. Yet here he is, leading the wicket-taker charts for LSG, against all the expectations. It’s these surprising little instances that show how LSG is balancing perfectly between luck and tactics. But if things that were not supposed to…

Ahmedabad or Chennai—Mumbai Indians (MI) found the same gremlins halting their way at both venues. MI fans would want to spare the details of how they have ended up at the bottom of the table two games into the tournament. While it’s true that they have historically taken time to get into the groove, their faults seem more penetrating this time. A home game seems to be the perfect setting for them to find solutions to the snag that is increasing the tension in the MI camp. They would, however, want to remember the fact that their home advantage did…

It’s 2022. We are in Ahmedabad, where Hardik Pandya, in his first-ever stint as captain leads Indian Premier League (IPL) debutants Gujarat Titans to their maiden trophy. The following year, he returns to the same stadium, playing another final for the same team but with a different result. A year later, in 2024, though, the final isn’t in Ahmedabad, GT aren’t playing it, and Hardik Pandya is no longer a part of them. He switched to his ex-team, Mumbai Indians, earning face fans’ fury in the process as well. As he gears up to walk on Ahmedabad’s soil again, has…

That they are set to play their preferred format might give Pakistan some solace, especially after the drubbing they received from New Zealand in the T20I series. But the memory of how they abysmally fell short of putting a respectable performance in the same format at their own home, just a few weeks ago, is still too fresh to let them wander too far into wishful thinking. Then again, what could be worse than a 4-1 back-to-back series loss? Even if they were to look past the botched Champions Trophy campaign on their home soil, they can not ignore that,…

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) scored a whopping 286 runs in their opening game, and yet, incredible as it may sound, it’s not even their highest total in the Indian Premier League. Of the top five highest innings totals in IPL, SRH were responsible for four of them. It can’t be attributed to luck or conditions entirely. They must be doing something right to end up with so many exploits. Exactly a year ago, on March 27, Sunrisers posted the then-highest IPL total of 277 runs in Hyderabad. Now back at the same venue, on the same date, can they finally break…

Both sides, Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), have yet to get off the mark. RR, in their first game, almost became the victim of the IPL’s first-ever 300-plus target. And if it were not for Tushar Deshpande’s (un)timely intervention, who knows – they might really have conceded a triple ton team total. This is not the sort of start they were looking for their campaign this year. But since they got it, their best bet to undo its impact on their tournament future is to use their second home in Guwahiti to the side’s benefit and get…

Belief is a confusing thing, no one knows exactly how long it needs to be held up. Trusting becomes easier when you are aware of when to pull out. But unfortunately, it’s not the case. Just as it isn’t for Pakistan. They have a new team, full of youngsters, which finds itself facing a 3-1 demoralising defeat on their first tour. They still have a game to go, though. But there is little that the game can do to repair the damage. This was all about the on-field fiasco. There is a bigger issue waiting for them off the field,…

If every player on a team is removed and replaced, will it, still, remain the same ship team? Punjab Kings will definitely not hope so. It did not end well for them in the last season. Or the season before that. Or the season before that. In fact, barring two editions, both over a decade ago, where they cracked into the top four, they have been, without any exaggeration, the worst of the lot.  A ninth-place finish last time triggered them to get rid of all but two of their players and rebuild the side with a winning formula. And…

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) make up IPL’s most followed rivalry, and that is hardly stuff for breaking news. It’s only natural for the fans to go ballistic over their games, with many of Indian cricket’s Goliaths being part of one or the other team. But can the rivalry persist in being as celebrated as it is with one side failing to keep its end steady? Mumbai Indians have not won a single game against their archrivals in the past two IPL seasons, regardless of venues. Pair this up with the change of guard for both sides…

Are we there yet? Have we entered Pakistan’s ‘high-risk’, ‘aggressive’, and ‘as-un-Pakistan-as-can-be’ cricket era? Is the gloom and doom in Pakistan cricket a relic of the past? They chased down 205 with nine wickets and four overs to spare in Auckland. The more you look back at how New Zealand fared, the better Pakistan’s performance appears in hindsight. Perhaps the hosts took the young Pakistan side too lightly. Whatever the reason, it inspired a comprehensive comeback from the visitors. Doing so they CPR-ed the series. But how long before the lifeline deflates again? How long before reality jumpscares them from…