Contents
LSG in IPL 2024: Team preview
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) came into existence back in 2022 along with the Gujarat Titans. LSG was one of the 2 new teams to be added to the Indian Premier League (IPL). However, even as the Titans have won a title and finished as the runners-up once, the Super Giants have fallen behind both times.
In both the seasons in 2022 and 2023, LSG made their way through to the playoffs. But after finishing third in the table after the league stage, they lost in the Eliminator. This time around, the Super Giants will look to go one step ahead and win the final.
In 2022, the Super Kings had KL Rahul as their skipper throughout the season. That time, Rahul also flourished as a batter for his new team after moving out of the Punjab Kings (PBKS). However, in 2023, Rahul sustained an injury midway through the tournament.
From there on Krunal Pandya took charge as the skipper of LSG and took them to the playoffs where they lost to the Mumbai Indians (MI) by 81 runs at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
With the likes of Quinton de Kock, Kyle Mayers, Mark Wood, Marcus Stoinis and other big names in their team, the Super Giants look a formidable unit. Rahul will also be looking to prove a point as he is yet to win an IPL title as well, having led LSG and PBKS.
Prior to the auction that took place last year in December, LSG released Karun Nair, Suryansh Shedge, Arpit Guleria, Karan Sharma, Daniel Sams, Swapnil Singh, Manan Vohra, and Jaydev Unadkat.
The Super Giants secured the services of Shivam Mavi, Arshin Kulkarni, M Siddarth, Ashton Turner, David Willey and Mohammed Arshad Khan.
Full LSG squad for IPL 2024
The Super Giants went all out for young fast bowler Shivam Mavi. They shelled out Mavi for a whopping price of INR 6.40 crore. Apart from being a potent fast bowler, Mavi can also wield the willow to good effect. LSG roped in David Willey, the former England all-rounder.
Ashton Turner, who has tasted loads of success for the Perth Scorchers in the Big Bash League, was bought for INR 2 crore. LSG also spent INR 2.40 crore for M Siddarth.
LSG squad
KL Rahul (c), Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Krunal Pandya, Yudhvir Singh, Prerak Mankad, Yash Thakur, Amit Mishra, Mark Wood, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, K. Gowtham, Shivam Mavi, Arshin Kulkarni, M. Siddharth, Ashton Turner, David Willey, Mohd. Arshad Khan.
Strengths
- Strong batting
The Super Giants have a strong batting lineup at their disposal. Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, KL Rahul and Quinton de Kock are some of the best in the business as far as T20 cricket is concerned.
- Power hitters
The Super Giants have some useful power hitters, who can score runs quickly in the death overs. Nicholas Pooran is someone who can tee off right from the outset. K Gowtham and Ayush Badoni can also strike the ball a long distance.
- Genuine pace
Mark Wood and Shivam Mavi can form a strong pace attack. Both are known for their genuine pace and can ruffle batters.
FIXTURES. ARE. HERE. 🔥
— Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) February 22, 2024
(some of them 😅) pic.twitter.com/3Qw8EFvVEr
Weaknesses
- Inexperienced Indian pace attack
The pace attack for the Super Giants does not have enough experience. It is their overseas set of fast bowlers, who must step up for LSG.
- Not enough spin-bowling options
Ravi Bishnoi has been a genuine wicket-taker for the Super Giants in the IPL. But apart from him, LSG don’t have wicket-taking options. Krunal Pandya and Gowtham are handy, but aren’t penetrative enough.
- Marcus Stoinis’ indifferent form
Marcus Stoinis has not been in the best of form of late. He scored only 63 runs from 4 matches for the Durban’s Super Giants in SA20 2024. In BBL 2023-24, Stoinis notched 169 runs at an average of 24.14.
LSG Predicted XI
1. KL Rahul
2. Quinton de Kock
3. Devdutt Padikkal
4. Nicholas Pooran
5. Krunal Pandya
6. Marcus Stoinis
7. Deepak Hooda
8. Shivam Mavi
9. Mark Wood
10. Ravi Bishnoi
11. Mohsin Khan
Impact player options for LSG
Naveen-ul-Haq can be a handy Impact Player for the Super Giants in certain games. The Afghanistan fast bowler is someone who is known for his cutters. On pitches that are slow and batters find it tough to score runs, Naveen can turn out to be a tough nut to crack.
K Gowtham may not get a chance in the playing XI right away. However, LSG can make judicious use of him. The right-handed batter can strike the ball a long distance. He can also bowl handy off-breaks and make life tough for batters on spin-friendly pitches.
Season prediction
The Super Giants somehow crawled their way into the playoffs in the last two seasons, but could not make progress. This time, LSG are likely to struggle again. And given the strengths of the other teams, it would be tough for the Super Giants to advance to the second round.
Rahul needs to pull a rabbit out of the hat if LSG have to break into the top four. The Super Giants do have the batting to threaten oppositions, but it is their bowling attack that might come under the pump.
Mark Wood is someone who is prone to injuries. If he sustains an injury in between the tournament, the LSG pace attack will be under a lot of pressure.
Ravi Bishnoi may just end up feeling the heat of being the workhorse for the Super Giants. It is the LSG batters, who have to put runs on the board and make it easier for their bowlers.
KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran, Kyle Mayers and Marcus Stoinis are going to hold the key for them throughout the tournament. It remains to be seen if Rahul can work magic for LSG.
