Hyderabad, April 5 (IANS) Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper Rishabh Pant struck the winning boundary with one ball to spare as his side survived a tense final-over scare to defeat Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by five wickets in a gripping Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 encounter at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Sunday.
Chasing 157, Lucknow looked comfortably placed for much of the innings before Hyderabad’s bowlers produced a spirited late fightback to drag the contest down to the wire. Pant eventually finished it in style, driving Jaydev Unadkat over mid-off for four in the penultimate ball of the match to seal Lucknow’s first win of the season.
Earlier, Hyderabad had recovered from a disastrous start to post 156/9 thanks to a remarkable counterattacking stand between Heinrich Klaasen and Nitish Kumar Reddy.
After being put in to bat, the Sunrisers were rocked early by the Lucknow pacers. Mohammed Shami removed Abhishek Sharma for a duck before sending back Travis Head soon after, while Prince Yadav dismissed Ishan Kishan as Hyderabad slumped to 11/3.
Wickets continued to tumble, and when Liam Livingstone fell cheaply, the hosts were in deep trouble at 35/4 at the halfway stage. Klaasen and Nitish then staged a stunning rescue, rebuilding cautiously before launching a counterattack.
Nitish took on the bowlers with a flurry of sixes while Klaasen found the gaps with authority, the pair stitching together a remarkable 116-run stand for the fifth wicket. Klaasen struck 62 off 41 balls while Nitish hammered 56 off just 33 deliveries to revive Hyderabad’s innings.
Lucknow, however, clawed back at the death with Avesh Khan and company striking in quick succession to prevent a bigger total.
In reply, Lucknow began positively with Aiden Markram leading the early charge. The South African played some fluent strokes in the powerplay and raced to a brisk 45 before falling to young spinner Shivang Kumar.
Pant then anchored the chase, rotating strike smartly while keeping the scoreboard ticking. Though not his most fluent innings, the left-hander held the innings together with a patient knock.
Hyderabad sensed an opening when Shivang dismissed Markram, and later a sharp run-out accounted for Nicholas Pooran, briefly shifting the momentum. Harsh Dubey further tightened the screws by removing Ayush Badoni.
Just when the match appeared to be slipping away from Lucknow, Abdul Samad provided a vital cameo with a couple of boundaries to ease the pressure.
Yet Hyderabad refused to back down. Dubey struck again to dismiss Samad in the 18th over, and a superb penultimate over from Harshal Patel conceded just four runs, leaving Lucknow needing nine off the final over.
Pant then turned the contest on its head. Two boundaries off the first two balls brought the equation down dramatically before the skipper sealed the win with another four off the penultimate delivery, finishing unbeaten on a gritty half-century to guide Lucknow home in a pulsating finish.
Brief scores: Sunrisers Hyderabad 156/9 in 20 overs (Heinrich Klaasen 62, Nitish Kumar Reddy 56; Mohammed Shami 2-9, Prince Yadav 2-34) lost to Lucknow Super Giants 160/5 in 19.5 overs (Rishabh Pant 68 not out, Aiden Markram 45; Harsh Dubey 2-18) by five wickets.
–IANS
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