Lucknow Super Giants : Lucknow Super Giants’ pace spearhead Mohammed Shami etched his name in the record books by achieving a rare feat. He has now taken a wicket on the very first ball of an IPL innings five times — the most by any bowler in the tournament’s history.
He stands alone at the top, while bowlers like Praveen Kumar, Umesh Yadav, Trent Boult, Lasith Malinga, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Ashok Dinda, and Pat Cummins share the second spot with three such dismissals each.
Early Blow and Middle-Order Struggles
Batting first after losing the toss at the Ekana Cricket Stadium on Wednesday, Lucknow Super Giants had a shaky start. Captain Rishabh Pant was dismissed early for just 7 runs, leaving the team at 19.
Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram tried to stabilize the innings with a 29-run partnership for the second wicket. Marsh looked in good touch, scoring 35 runs off 28 balls, including three sixes and two boundaries, before heading back to the pavilion.
Collapse Before Late Resistance
Lucknow found themselves in trouble at 71 for 5, struggling to build any momentum. However, Abdul Samad stepped up and played a fighting knock.
He stitched a 34-run stand with Mukul Choudhary for the sixth wicket and followed it up with a 33-run partnership alongside Shahbaz Ahmed for the seventh wicket. Samad scored 36 runs off 25 balls with four boundaries, while Shahbaz remained unbeaten on 15. Mukul added 14 runs to the total.
Delhi Bowlers Dominate
Despite the late effort, Lucknow Super Giants were bowled out for 141 in 18.4 overs. Delhi’s bowling unit kept the pressure intact throughout the innings.
Lungi Ngidi and T Natarajan were the standout performers, claiming three wickets each. Kuldeep Yadav chipped in with two wickets, while Axar Patel picked up one.
Lucknow’s innings never really gained full momentum, and despite a brief recovery in the latter half, they could only manage a modest total on the board.