Marsh, Pooran Stars in LSG's Narrow Win Against KKR in a High-Scoring battle

KKR batted well to reach the target but fell four runs short of the victory

LSG wasted a review before finally getting Quinton de Kock in the third over / Cricbuzz

Nicholas Pooran has been in the form of his life in this season's IPL, with some naming him the best T20 batter at the moment. He was exceptional yet again for LSG, playing a great inning that led his side to victory against KKR. Mitchell Marsh was equally remarkable, scoring 82 runs to help his side post a humongous target.

Playing XI:

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG): Mitch Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, David Miller, Shardul Thakur, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Rathi
Subs: Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Shahbaz Ahmed, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR): Quinton de Kock (wk), Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Vaibhav Arora, Spencer Johnson, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy
Subs: Manish Pandey, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Anukul Roy, Rovman Powell, Luvnith Sissodia

LSG's Top Order Destroys KKR's Bowling Attack

KKR's skipper, Ajinkya Rahane, won the toss and decided to field first. That, however, proved to be a fatal decision as LSG's top order came out all guns blazing. Markram started the attack, playing with ease and striking the ball around the park. He scored 47 off 28 balls, providing his side a perfect start.

However, the wicket of Markram proved to be a blessing in disguise as Pooran joined Mitchell Marsh in the middle, and the duo made a partnership that helped LSG post their second-best total in IPL history. They scored 71 runs in just five overs before Marsh was dismissed by Andre Russell. But LSG had already got what they wanted as they finished the innings with 238 on board. Pooran played the exceptional knock of 87 in just 36 balls, with a strike rate of 236.

KKR takes advantage of the Powerplay

KKR made a strong start, with both the openers looking to capitalize on the powerplay restrictions. De Kock seemed in good touch and made a promising start, but his stay on the crease was cut short by Akash Deep. Skipper Rahane joined Narine in the middle, and together they formed a partnership of 54 in just 4 overs, taking the team's total to 91 in the powerplay. However, Narine soon perished after the powerplay, and things got complex for KKR after.

Rahane and Vankatesh Iyer teamed up to take KKR close to the target but LSG's bowlers were right on money at end of the innings, giving little room to KKR's lower order, taking four wickets in just 15 deliveries. Rinku Singh tried his best with his explosive batting at the end, to take his side to victory but his efforts weren't good enough, falling short by 4 runs.