Lucknow Super Giants captain Rishabh Pant said his the below-par showing by the batters was a vital reason in their five-run defeat at the hands of Chennai Super Kings in Lucknow on Monday.
LSG's batters struggled on a two-paced wicket at the Ekana Stadium as they were restricted to 166/7 with Pant top-scoring with 63 from 49 balls -- his first fifty of the season.
Pant believes the lack of partnerships in the middle overs saw his team finish 10 to 15 runs short of their expected total.
"We feel that as a team we were 10 to 15 runs short, we kept losing wickets when the momentum was with us. We had to keep stitching in partnerships. The wicket was stopping a bit, but we could have got 15 runs more, I feel," he said.
Talking about his return to form, Pant stated: "I am feeling better with each
LSG's bowlers have struggled in the Powerplay in IPL 2025, conceding 50-plus runs in the six overs of Powerplay in all the seven games they have played so far.
CSK's openers Rachin Ravindra and Shaik Rasheed hit a flurry of boundaries in the first few overs as they raked up 59/1 in the Powerplay to set the tone in the run chase.
"Bowling in the Powerplay has been a concern for us, but we can pull things back. As a team, we are looking to take the positives from each and every game, and we are trying to improve," Pant admitted.
Ravi Bishnoi was LSG's best bowler with figures of 2/18 but in a surprise move he was bowled only for three overs.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni provided the flourish at the end with a quickfire 26 not out from 11 balls, while Shivam Dube stroked 43 from 37 balls as CSK chased down the target of 167 with three balls to spare, to return to winning ways after five straight defeats.
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