Riding on a destructive innings from Mitchell Marsh and a late strike from Nicholas Pooran, Lucknow Super Giants defeated Chennai Super Kings by seven wickets in their IPL 2026 match in Lucknow on Friday. Chasing 188, Marsh led the charge with 90 off just 38 balls and shared a 135-run opening partnership with Josh Inglis, keeping the chase firmly in LSG’s control. While Inglis played a supporting role, Marsh dominated CSK’s bowling attack from the start. He aimed hard at Anshul Kamboj and smashed him for 28 runs in one as Lucknow scored 86 runs in the powerplay. Marsh looked for boundaries regularly and brought up 90 in just 38 deliveries before CSK fought back briefly with three wickets in nine overs, including both openers. However, Pooran sealed the game in brutal fashion. After initially struggling, the left-hander smashed Kamboja for four consecutive sixes and finished the match in the 17th over. Kamboj ended up hitting eight sixes in an innings, equaling the IPL record for most sixes by a bowler in a single innings alongside Yash Dayal against KKR in Ahmedabad in 2023. At half-time, CSK’s 187 for five looked competitive, but LSG’s aggressive batting made the target look much smaller as they completed the chase with 20 balls to spare. Earlier, Chennai recovered well from early setbacks through Karthik Sharma who scored 71. CSK were reduced to 52 for three in 7.2 overs after the LSG bowlers used hard lengths effectively, with Akash Singh taking three wickets for 26 runs. Kartik and Dewald Brevis added 70 runs for the fourth wicket to rebuild the innings. Kartik looked uncomfortable against the short balls around the chest and chin but managed to settle down and go into the counter attack. He first faced spinner Shahbaz Ahmed with a six before hitting another maximum and two boundaries in a row. Kartik then reached his fifty in 35 balls by hitting Mohammed Shami for a six. Shami eventually dismissed Brevis with a short ball that resulted in a catch for Akash Singh. Kartik also fell soon after when he bowled Shahbaz Ahmed straight to Aiden Markram after making 71 off 42 balls. Shivam Dube then provided the late momentum with 32 off 16 balls, including big hits in the final over off the bowling of Prince Yadav, who went for 23 runs.Quick Score:Chennai Super Kings: 187 for 5 in 20 overs (Kartik Sharma 71, Shivam Dube 32 not out; Akash Singh 3/26).Lucknow Super Giants: 188 for 3 in 16.4 overs (Mitchell Marsh 90; Mukesh Choudhary 1/24).
