IPL 2024 LSG vs DC Preview - Lucknow must strike while the iron is hot

Key match stats

Pitch Stats – Ekana Stadium IPL records

Pitch stats from the 10 most recent IPL matches played at the Ekana Stadium

Team form LSG vs DC
LSG: LWWW
DC: LLWLL

Recent meetings: IPL 2023 - LSG won by 50 runs

Weather

General Forecast: Dry and Clear
Chance of dew: Low

Preview LSG vs DC

Delhi Capitals win against CSK in round 3 now seems like a distant memory off the back of conceding 500+ runs in the 2 matches that they've played since. After the CSK game, I'd suggested that the DC bowling attack could be shaping up nicely if they could get everyone fit and maintain 6 bowling options with their impact sub.

The absence of Kuldeep Yadav and Mukesh Kumar hasn't helped DC's plight in their most recent defeats and the lack more generally of specialist death bowlers (they are conceeding 14.8 an over at the death in IPL 2024) really hurt them in the loss against Mumbai. Against, MI you'd say that there were moments where DC were well in the game and looked like limiting the hosts to a score of around 200 which at the Wankhede is very getable.

However, MI's final flourish to push them beyond the 230 mark meant that a relatively weak DC batting line-up was going to have to play out of their skins to overhaul that total and despite a fantastic knock from Tristan Stubbs they were always behind the rate.

Conditions at the Ekana Stadium are likely to be the polar opposite of those at the Wankhede. LSG completed another first innings victory here by beating GT last time out.

As the graphic above shows that's now 6 of the 8 completed matches played at this new stadium that have been won by the side batting first. If you drill down further into those stats then you discover that the last 5 IPL matches here have all been won by the team batting first and of the occasions where a team have won chasing, 1 of those involved LSG chasing down SRH's meagre total of 121, the lowest first innings score recorded here in an IPL match.

DC know all too well about the difficulty of chasing on this pitch. They lost the inaugural IPL match to be played at the Ekana Stadium by 50 runs after LSG scored 193 in the first innings, 1 of only 2 times that a team has scored in excess of 180 on this pitch.

If anything, a relatively low scoring game might well suit the Delhi Capitals. They've only passed the 200 mark twice since the start of last season. Once in their last match on a Wankhede pitch where 200 is a par score and once at altitude in Dharamshala vs PBKS. Grinding out a win on these sort of surfaces looks a far more likely route to victory than getting into a hitting contest with some of the more muscular batting line-ups around.

LSG vs DC head to head

DC bowling vs LSG batting

Comparatively speaking, games at the Ekana Stadium are not as entertaining, at least in terms of six hitting, as other venues currently in use. However, after a bit of a bumpy start, LSG have found a way to win here and are currently unbeaten in their last 5 matches at the Ekana (4 wins and a no-result).

Stoinis IPL record at the Ekana Stadium

Getting KL Rahul out early will be the key to disrupting LSG. They lost a couple of wickets in the powerplay against GT but he and Stoinis were able to rebuild the innings and LSG have enough lower order firepower to make up runs at the death. Given that Stoinis is generally seen as more effective on bouncier, faster wickets then his stats at the Ekana Stadium are very strong within the context of how tough most players have found run scoring here.

Devdutt Paddikal T20 head to head vs Nortje

One of those early wickets in LSG's last match was Devdutt Paddikal and his continued lack of form must be a real concern for LSG. You can argue that he's not ideally suited to the middle order role that RR in particular asked him to play over the last couple of year but against GT he came in during the first over and looked like a man completely devoid of confidence.

Of course the argument for teams persisting with him over the past 3 seasons, a period in which he's scored only 3 half-centuries, is that he offers a match-up against left-arm and wrist spin in the middle overs.

Axar Patel T20 head to head vs KL Rahul

LSG will continue to be wary of that threat from a DC side that will have at least Axar Patel in those middle overs and possibly Kuldeep Yadav too, depending on his fitness. Axar dragged his team back into the match against MI and has probably been DC's most impactful player over the last 2 seasons with both bat and ball.

LSG bowling vs DC batting

Probably the most damming fact for DC's batting this season is that they've not fielded the same top 3 in any of their 5 IPL matches so far. You'd expect a degree of flexibility with the middle order but generally speaking, the teams that are successful have their top 3 nailed on for the majority of games. By contrast, DC are still searching for a solution to a problem that has alluded them for quite a while now.

Warner T20 head to head vs Bishnoi

Ravi Bishnoi continues to be one Warner's primary tormentors in T20 cricket so expect to see him introduced to the bowling attack pretty earlier on if the Aussie is still at the crease. Warner's T20 record against wrist-spin more generally is very impressive with an average of 43 and strike rate approaching 150. However, Bishnoi is essentially a googly bowler and Warner probably needs to play as he would an off-spinner.

The strength of this LSG team comes from it's multiple all-round options which mean they've been able to deploy a minimum of 6 different bowlers in every innings so far this season.

Yash Thakhur IPL record at the Ekana Stadium

However, it's not just the number of bowlers available to KL Rahul, it's the variety that they offer which is also key. For example, in their win at the Ekana Stadium we saw Yash Thakur take 4 wickets on a slower pitch where his change ups and cutters were far more effective. Whereas when there's been more pace in the surface, LSG have had the luxury of unleashing Mayank Yadav. LSG have the tools to win in various conditions and they are using them effectively.

With defeats to both KKR and RR in their most recent games, Lucknow Super Giants have a fantastic opportunity to go top of the league. As alluded to in my first LSG match preview of the season, they've been remarkably consistent these last 2 years but must still look at their 2 playoff appearances as missed opportunities for at least a spot in the final if not the title itself.

As Delhi Capitals, a team who have never won a title but who reached the playoffs 3 times in a row between 2019 and 2021 can attest to, you have to take these opportunities because the 3 year cycle of super auctions makes long-term success very difficult to achieve in the IPL. LSG must strike while the iron is hot!

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All stats used in this blog are from my own databases which are freely accessible below
IPL player head to head records
IPL player records by stadium
IPL stadium records.
Images are my own with the exception of player profiles and highlights within GIFs which are not intended to infringe copyright- read full disclaimer. Background images are used under a creative commons license or otherwise royalty free.