'We played stupid cricket, I was fuming': KL Rahul slams LSG batters for poor show against PBKS in IPL 2022

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) by 20 runs on Friday (April 29) as they bagged crucial two points to move up on the points table. The KL Rahul-led side successfully defended a total of 153 runs to bag their second win in a row. While the batters didn't live up to the expectations, the bowlers were on the money for Lucknow Super Giants.

Skipper Rahul was not happy after the poor show from his batters in the first innings at the MCA Stadium in Pune as he slammed them for throwing away their wickets cheaply in the middle overs. Rahul said LSG batters played 'stupid cricket' and revealed he was fuming at the end of the first innings as he thought his side could have scored 20-30 more runs.

Batting first, Lucknow Super Giants got off to a shaky start as they lost Rahul cheaply on 6 off 11 balls before opener Quinton de Kock (46) combined with Deepak Hooda (34) to put on an 85-run stand for the second wicket on a difficult pitch. However, after the duo's departure, LSG lost the likes of Krunal Pandya (7), Marcus Stoinis (1) and Ayush Badoni (4) in quick succession as none of them managed to forge a partnership.

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"I was disappointed and fuming at the end of the first innings. We played stupid cricket with the bat," Rahul said at the post-match presentation as he slammed his middle-order batters for their poor show.

"We need to get better with the bat. Half-time, when Quinny and Deepak were batting. They paced it really, really well to get to 60 in 9 overs on a tricky wicket. Had we batted smartly, we could have gotten to 180-190.

"I think we just need to be smarter at reading the game. If we could not have played too many shots, we could have done better. We have been good on the field and good with the ball. Just need to keep repeating the good things," the LSG skipper added.

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Late cameos from Mohsin Khan (13 off 6) and Dushmantha Chameera (17 off 10) saw LSG post a fighting total of 153 runs on the board in 20 overs. In reply, Punjab Kings could only manage 133/8 in 20 overs as they fell short by 20 runs in the run chase.

Debutant Mohsin impressed with the ball for LSG as he finished with a three-wicket haul while the likes of Chameera and Krunal picked up two wickets apiece to hand LSG a second consecutive victory this season.