SRH vs LSG Highlights, IPL 2026: Rishabh Pant’s fighting 68* takes LSG home in a tense run-chase

Meanwhile in Bengaluru, Ruturaj has won the toss and CSK will be bowling first against a red-hot RCB.

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RISHABH PANT GOES OVER MID OFF! A four to finish things off. After a couple of dot balls, hits a third boundary in the over and takes LSG past the finish line.

It wasn't always pretty on what turned out to be a tricky chase but Pant takes his side past the finish line. A 50-ball 68* and he hit the big shots at crunch moments.

Over 19.1: What a shot. Full from Unadkat, and Pant has smashed this down the ground for a four. Hit like an arrow. Long on couldn't get around to it.

The Harshal Patel dipping full tosses have worked a treat for SRH here! Last ball, Mukul is given out LBW but he reviews it and overturns the decision. But the moment it was given out, it was a dot ball anyway.

FOUR RUNS IN THAT OVER! Terrific from Harshal and LSG need 9 off 6. How on earth did we get here in this match?

WELL WELL WELL! Is there life in this yet? Rishabh tied down for a couple of dot balls at the start of this over, then gets off strike. And Harsh gets the wicket off the fourth ball, as Samad tried to go big down the ground. Caught at long off.

Getting tense, again.

Abdul Samad c Liam Livingstone b Harsh Dubey 16 (12 balls)

A much-needed over for LSG. A much-needed over for Pant. Unadkat concedes 14, a couple of fours for the LSG skipper down the leg side. First, an awkward pull and then a lovely flick of the wrists. Pant inches closer to a fifty, LSG close in on the win.

Tight over from Malinga, no boundaries in that over as SRH continue to keep the pressure up. Who would have thought we'd be heading for a tight finish when SRH were 35/4 after 10 overs in their batting innings?

Final timeout. And there is a lot to talk about.

NICKY P, where are you off to? What a bizarre, bizarre dismissal. Pooran sweeps Shivang, it hits the pitch close to the leg stump and goes on the bounce to Ishan. He gathers the ball and whips the bails off, while Pooran had no idea where the ball was and started to run. That is utterly remarkable!

Nicholas Pooran run out (Ishan Kishan) 1 (4 balls)

There is some momentum for Rishabh Pant. Takes on Shivang, first a crisply hit lofted cover drive for four and then picks up the wrong 'un and pulls it away through square leg. The LSG captain has spent enough time in the middle, and his side needs more of this as they should try and chase this quickly.

The at-this-stage comparison will feel a bit silly at this point. LSG are 81/2, SRH were 35/4.

That is a very shaky over from Pant, he is looking to force his way into some form but mishitting and getting away with it. First, a poorly timed shot just clears mid off, Livingstone should have done better there. Then a diving effort by Shivang at deep fine leg, evades his outstretched right hand and goes for four.

A steady 7th over as Harshal concedes just four in that over.

Leftie wristie Shivang up next.

Four and out! Marsh seemed to be getting into his groove with a four past mid off but goes for another big one and holes out in the deep square leg. Rishabh Pant is the new man in.

Mitchell Marsh c Nitish Kumar Reddy b Eshan Malinga 14 (12 balls)

Harsh Dubey continues and Markram goes downtown for a lofted four down the ground. This is a solid start from LSG, as tbey have reverted to an opening pair that had so much success last season. You have to wonder why they changed it last match to make Rishabh Pant open.

Unadkat into the attack now, just one over for Nitish.

Harshal hits a four first ball and then is run out off the last ball of the innings trying to sneak a bye. Aniket Verma didn't quite get his timing right in the last couple of overs, SRH would have loved at least one six from their finisher. But this is a solid recovery from 35/4 after 10 overs, SRH managed 121 in the last 10 overs.

Harshal Patel run out (Rishabh Pant) 4 (2 balls)

What a superb 19th over by Avesh. Started with two wickets and kept things tight after that as well. 160 looked on the cards when Nitish and Klaasen were going.

Spider-Pant! Another fine catch by the LSG skipper today as he dives full stretch to his right and takes a stunner to dismiss Klaasen. He went for that reverse scoop against Avesh but didn't get the eleveation.

Heinrich Klaasen c Rishabh Pant b Avesh Khan 62 (41 balls)

End of a fabulous counterattack. Nitish frees his arms again but this time finds the fielder at deep cover. Siddharth's wide outside off tactic pays off.

Nitish Kumar Reddy c Prince Yadav b Siddharth 56 (33 balls)

88 runs in the last 6 overs. Nearly 15 runs an over!

THREE SIXES IN THAT OVER! This feels like a different match to the one we were watching before. Nitish Reddy has smashed Digvesh Rathi for three massive hits in that over, the first two back-to-back and then one off the last ball. Clean hitting through the line.

DROPPED! Mukul puts Klaasen down at deep midwicket. Not an easy chance but having covered good ground and gotten to the ball in full, he should have done better. Seems to have been blinded by the sunlight in his face there. Nitish, meanwhile, is in a zone now as he started the over with a nice inside out lofted drive for four.

Well, well. 35 runs in the first 10 overs. 30 runs in the next two! 14 from this Rathi over as Nitish hits a couple of boundaries, one down the ground and another nicely cut behind point. Some good running between the wickets too in that over.

Nearly half the total runs SRH had scored so far in the match in 10 overs, come in the 11th over. Prince goes into the slot and Nitish smashes one over long off for his first six. That was so cleanly struck. Later in the over, Prince misses the length again and bowls a full toss, and Klaasen got a hold of that over midwicket for another six.

Crowd come alive again.

Oh a chance... but a really tough one. Siddharth darts one in and Klaasen gets an under-edge as he tried to cut the ball. It squeaks through the legs of a crouched Pant. Actually harsh to call that a chance. Goes for three. Just four from that over as Siddharth keeps things fast and tight.

Halfway stage and the score is 35/4. Would you believe it had we said at the start?

WHAT A CATCH! That is a stunner from Rishabh Pant. Livingstone goes for the scoop and gets into a big tangle. Rishabh tried to initially jump and stop it but sees the ball hasn't travelled and has looped in front of him off the batter's shoulder, so he quickly adjusts and puts in a dive to take a one-hander. Digvesh strikes for his first of the season.

Liam Livingstone c Rishabh Pant b Digvesh Rathi 14 (20 balls)

Livingstone gives Siddharth the charge and sends one soaring into the afternoon sky for the first six of the match. But despite that six, it is just a 7-run over as Siddharth keeps it tight.

An absolutely dream powerplay this for Pant and LSG after winning the toss.

Another terrific over from Shami and nearly had Livingstone's wicket there. A length ball that almost kissed the top of offstump. Massively close! And there were a couple of mishits that looped over fielders. Could have been caught too but went for a couple of doubles.

WOW! WHAT A BALL! ISHAN DONE BY A RIPPER! Prince Yadav into the attack and he produces an absolute peach, seam up and moving slightly back into Ishan, from a good length and the stumps on the floor. Superb seam movement.

Ishan Kishan b Prince Yadav 1 (4 balls)

No hat-trick. But what a start by Shami and LSG. Travishek sent off nice and early.

Digvesh starts with a rank short ball that Head puts away for four but the mercurial spinner comes back well in the over to keep it to just 7 runs.

Digvesh Rathi from the other end to start off. LSG go to spin early.

Mohammed Shami has the new ball in hand. Expect some lovely seam positions early.

Travis Head on strike. Here we go. There could be fireworks here.

Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma found their groove at Eden Gardens, adding 82 in 5.4 overs, in what was another blistering opening partnership. Can they get going again today?

TEAM NEWS:

Siddharth comes in for LSG. As does Digvesh Rathi, in the first XI today. Unlike their fumble in the last match...

"Their main strength is batting, let them bat first, we'll put pressure in the second innings." That's a little bit of a strange thing to say by Pant.

Sarfaraz Khan’s journey to the top was shaped by the tireless efforts of his father, Naushad Khan, who guided him and his younger son Musheer Khan through years of training in Mumbai’s maidans and the domestic circuit. That bond was evident ahead of the CSK vs PBKS clash in Chennai, where a video of Sarfaraz gifting a Chennai Super Kings jersey to his father went viral. The jersey bore Naushad’s name and the number ‘97’, his favourite. “Welcome to Chennai, Dad. CSK have made a T-shirt for you with your name and the number ‘97’ written on it. 97 is your favourite number because your name translates to 97 when read in Hindi,” Sarfaraz said in the X (formerly Twitter) video. Naushad was later seen wearing the jersey along with a Punjab Kings cap in support of Musheer, reflecting split loyalties. Sarfaraz jumped in to say that, as he was the elder son, his father wished for CSK to do better. In 2024, Naushad had seen his son receive his Test cap from Anil Kumble during the third Test against England at Rajkot.

A visibly exhausted Rishabh Pant says, almost pleading, "Woh mat puchiye." He's responding to a question about how many kilograms he's shed. He doesn't need to answer it. The work he has put in over the last five months speaks for itself. Ahead of what promises to be a defining IPL season, the Lucknow Super Giants captain looks remarkably fit as the franchise begins its preparations in Chennai.

Although Pant remains an integral part of India's Test setup, his white-ball standing has slipped. When India needed a second wicketkeeper for the recent T20 World Cup — with Jitesh Sharma unavailable — it was Ishan Kishan who got the nod. In the ODI format, Pant has been part of the squad, but with KL Rahul firmly established as the first-choice keeper, he has spent much of his time on the bench. Among all Indian players heading into this IPL, few have more at stake than Pant. With Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson both in fine form and favour, this is his moment to remind selectors that he remains very much in the reckoning.

By the looks of it, Pant seems acutely aware of that. Before arriving in Chennai — where Lucknow have set up their pre-season base at former India bowling coach Bharat Arun's academy, Coaching Beyond — Pant spent five days in Mumbai working with Yuvraj Singh. The sessions with Yuvraj, who has played a key role in the development of Shubman Gill and Abhishek Sharma, were focused on the basics: retaining shape, bat swing, and above all, clarity in shot selection. The idea, it is understood, was to keep things simple.

Read more here from Venkata Krishna's pre-season piece.

LSG's confusing vibes
New colours, new logo, but same old confusing vibes. If the first match is anything to go by, LSG's tactics produced more questions than provide answers: opening with Rishabh Pant, to break one of the most threatening combos that they had, not picking an outright spinner in their batting XI – one of the stories of IPL 2025 in Digvesh Rathi – to then pick a stop-gap allrounder Shahbaz Ahmed to arrest a collapse... LSG have some serious rethinking to do.