"Still a very good wicket": Cummins reacts as LSG defeat SRH by five wickets

Hyderabad (Telangana) [India], March 28 : A dominant all-round performance from Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) saw them secure a five-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at Uppal Stadium in their Indian Premier League (IPL) clash on Thursday. Quickfire half-centuries from Nicholas Pooran and Mitchell Marsh, coupled with a fiery spell from Shardul Thakur, helped LSG chase down SRH's total of 190 in a thrilling contest.
After the match, SRH captain Pat Cummins acknowledged the challenging conditions but credited LSG's bowlers for their well-planned approach.
"It was a different wicket the other day, but we had to score quickly. They batted really well, though. Still a very good wicket, that was the best wicket in the world, and this was the second-best wicket. It gripped a little bit, but it was a nice wicket," Cummins said.
Reflecting on SRH's batting performance, the Australian pacer pointed out the need for a player to anchor the innings, similar to how Ishan Kishan did in their previous match.
"Every time it's a fresh game, they bowled really well, it was very well planned. It was a pretty good effort to get to 190. You always need one person to bat throughout the innings, like Ishan (Kishan) did the other day, but they bowled really well, never let us off the hook," he added.
Despite boasting a strong batting lineup, Cummins admitted that SRH fell short in capitalizing on key moments.
"We got eight batters, it's about going out there and making an impact. You see things you could have done better, that could have been the difference. It's a long competition, we will get a chance pretty quickly, so we need to move on," he concluded.
Coming to the match, SRH was put to bat first by LSG, who had opted to bowl first. Shardul restricted LSG to 15/2, but a 61-run partnership between Travis Head (47 in 28 balls, with five fours and a six) and Nitish Kumar Reddy (32 in 28 balls, with two fours) stabilised the innings for a bit. Cameos did come from Heinrich Klaasen (26 in 17 balls, with two fours and a six), Aniket Varma (36 in 13 balls, with five sixes) and skipper Pat Cummins (18 in four balls, with three sixes), which pushed SRH to 190/9 in their 20 overs.
During the run-chase, LSG lost Aiden Markram early, but a 116-run stand between Nicholas Pooran (70 in 26 balls, with six fours and six sixes) and Mitchell Marsh (52 in 31 balls, with seven fours and two sixes) and a fine cameo in the end from Abdul Samad (22* in eight balls, with two fours and two sixes) pushed LSG to a five-wicket win with 23 balls left. Pat (2/29) was top bowler for SRH.
Shardul Thakur was named the 'Player of the Match' for his fiery spell.
With this win, LSG strengthened their position in the tournament, while SRH will look to bounce back in their upcoming matches as the IPL season progresses.