LSG suffer shock 40-run defeat to RR (BCCI Photo) Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) head coach Justin Langer admitted that his team is struggling to adapt to the unique conditions at the Ekana Stadium as he compared the surface to the famous WACA Ground after their failed chase of 160 against Rajasthan Royals.Langer described the pitch as “brilliant” but acknowledged that LSG’s batsmen could not adapt to its extraordinary pace and bounce. The venue has proved problematic for Lucknow, who have now lost all three home matches this season and have managed just six wins in 17 matches there since 2024.Langer pointed out after the April 22 defeat that the surface behaves very differently from typical Indian pitches.“I think the pitch here is very different to most of India. It’s a great cricket pitch. You see the pace and the bounce but we haven’t quite adapted to it. I thought we started the bowling quite well. We bowled well in the first game but we just don’t adapt to the extra pace and bounce. We saw that we were out how many times our batting and batting would say our batting and batting.” wrestle.“So we don’t adapt. We see a lot of wickets in India where the ball doesn’t bounce very high. It’s like playing at the WACA (Perth). There’s real pace and bounce isn’t there?” he added.Chasing 160, LSG were rattled early on and fell to 11/3 in three overs as Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger made excellent use of the conditions. Rishabh Pant attempted an aggressive flick while Aiden Markram fell to a crisp short ball, highlighting LSG’s discomfort on the bounce.Langer emphasized that ignorance of such conditions is a key issue.“We see a lot of wickets in India where the ball doesn’t bounce much. It’s like playing at the WACA, there’s real pace and bounce. We just haven’t been able to adapt,” he added.Despite the setbacks, Langer praised his bowling unit and singled out Mohsin Khan and Prince Yadav as India’s future prospects, saying he had “no doubt” that both would represent the national team. He also dismissed any concerns about pitch preparation, backing the ground staff and reiterating that the surface is among the best in the country.“Last year our numbers were incredible and we regretted the fact that a lot of our bowlers were injured or coming back from injury or not fully fit. This year our bowlers have been a real credit. I think Mohsin Khan, outstanding again. Prince Yadav, I think they are both players who will play for India. There is no doubt that they will both play for India,” Langer continued.“It’s a great cricket wicket. Every game here is exciting, we’ve just been on the wrong side so far,” he added.
