Lucknow Super Giants suffered their fifth consecutive loss in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 as they were beaten by the Kolkata Knight Riders in the Super Over on Sunday, April 26.
Rishabh Pant won the toss at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium and invited the Knights to bat first. Mohsin Khan bowled a brilliant spell with the new ball as he accounted for three wickets. Angkrish Raghuvanshi, on the other hand, was controversially given out for obstructing the ball.
At 31/4 in the seventh over, KKR were staring down the barrel. Cameron Green and Rinku Singh resurrected the innings with a 42-run partnership in quick time. However, Mohsin returned to dismiss Green and Anukul Roy off consecutive deliveries in the 11th over. Ramandeep Singh also perished soon after, and it was all down to Rinku Singh and Sunil Narine to take KKR to a competitive total after being in a precarious situation at 93/7 in 15 overs.
Both of them added 62 runs in 30 balls, with Narine only contributing four off six deliveries. Rinku smashed 56 off 24 balls in that partnership, belting four sixes in the last over bowled by Digvesh Rathi. The visitors finished on 155/7 in their 20 overs.
In reply, Lucknow went back to the Aiden Markram-Mitchell March combination at the top of the order. However, Marsh departed early, being dismissed by Vaibhav Arora.
Aiden Markam and Rishabh Pant dug deep on a sluggish track and took their team towards the target. However, Cameron Green broke the 57-run stand in the 11th over, sending Markram back to the hut. Pant also failed to capitalise on his start, as he departed for 42.
Nicholas Pooran and Ayush Badoni were sent packing by Varun Chakaravarthy, as wickets at regular intervals kept KKR in the hunt.
In the last over, 17 runs were needed, with Mohammed Shami and Himmat Singh at the crease. Shami managed to run a bye and get to the non-striker’s end on the first ball. The next two balls were beamers from Kartik Tyagi. Himmat hit the second free hit for a boundary but holed out off the next ball.
The equation came down to seven runs needed off the last ball. Shami backed himself and launched one over long-off for a maximum to take the match into the Super Over.
In the Super Over, Narine dismissed Pooran on the first ball and Markram on the third. LSG only managed to score a solitary run from Rishabh Pant’s bat. Rinku Singh and Rovman Powell came out to chase the paltry two-run target. Prince Yadav tried the yorker but couldn’t execute as Rinku hit it past the in-field and away from the one at sweeper, finishing the match with a boundary.
Talking points:
1. Mohsin Khan makes merry at Ekana
Mohsin Khan looked in great rhythm in the last game, and on Sunday, he went from strength to strength. He took the wickets of Ajinkya Rahane, Tim Seifert, Rovman Powell, Cameron Green, and Anukul Roy to break the back of KKR’s batting. Mohsin finished with figures of 5/23 in four overs, including one maiden. This is his best figures and first-ever five-for in T20 cricket.
2. Rinku Singh shines with grit and determination
Rinku Singh had been short on runs in the first game. However, in the last match, he was given a reprieve by Nandre Burger, and since then, he has looked like a different batter altogether. On Sunday, he played the anchor’s role to perfection before shifting gears towards the back end. He amassed 83* off 55 balls, hitting seven fours and five sixes.
3. Sunil Narine – The Super Over behemoth
Sunil Narine has a great record against Nicholas Pooran in the Super Over. In the Caribbean Premier League, he had bowled a maiden in a Super Over against the dangerous batter. On Sunday, Narine needed just one ball to dismiss Pooran. After conceding a single off the next ball, the mystery spinner had Markram out caught by Rinku after Rovman Powell’s exemplary presence of mind on the boundary. Even in the match, Narine’s spell of 1/23 in four overs strangled LSG through the middle.
Who said what
Rishabh Pant, Lucknow Super Giants captain:
(Your thoughts?) See, I think we definitely need a break. I think we’re gonna refresh, there is always pressure and it’s gonna be pressure game always, but at the same time, we have to look for answers inside, not outside. And just keep it simple. Just take accountability, each and every guy. Like, it can’t be about one or two guys. It has to be about the whole unit and a lot of people will take accountability for that for sure. (Pooran is out of form, what was the thought process behind sending him) We had a discussion as a group we had a discussion and the name came up was Nicholas Pooran. He might not go through the best form of his life, but at the same time, you will trust your player in a hard situation like this. They’re gonna come up nicely. So, no excuses there. Just looking at the positive, there might not be enough positive right now, but I think after the break, there will be a lot of enough positive for sure. (Thoughts behind bowling Digvesh Rathi?) See, there are always time in cricket where you can turn a little bit of bowling at the same time. But sometimes bowlers got to bowl those hard overs. And there will be time when I have to give him that in middle overs because I was looking for a wicket. I just didn’t get one. That was the thought process behind it. And too many minds doesn’t make it easy on the ground.
Ajinkya Rahane, Kolkata Knight Riders captain:
Settled. Really happy with the victory. The way we played after the 16 overs, Rinku’s innings was amazing. That last over and getting the momentum to our side was amazing. We played SMAT here and the soil was similarly, we thought 160-170 would be a good total. But the kind of bowling we did it was amazing. It was about having that belief, one wicket here and there and the opposition is back in the game, we were really confident about our spinners. We knew one wicket would change the game for us. No, not really. Sunil Narine was the option and hitting spinners to the long boundary was not easy. Tyagi has been really good, Vaibhav as well.. All these Indian guys are doing well. But let’s not take credit away from Rinku Singh. You have to be in the moment, using the longer boundary is something we spoke about and guys have been practising. You have to be clear as a bowler.
Rinku Singh, Player of the Match (translated from Hindi):
(Should we change your name to Rinku Sankatmochan) No, Rinku is fine. When I went into bat four wickets had fallen, so I kept thinking how I can go about and I have to take the game till the end. Since we had lost four wickets, it was about keeping the scoreboard moving and put the loose balls away. I like fielding since my childhood, I am fit and I enjoy my fielding. I was not ready, I thought he would complete the catch, but he threw it long and I was able to hang on.
