Nicholas Pooran's 19-ball 62 helps LSG beat RCB by 1 wicket in high-scoring thriller

KL Rahul-led Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by one wicket in a high-scoring thriller in the IPL 2023 clash at the Chinnaswamy Stadium on Monday.

Chasing a staggering 213, LSG got off to a dreadful start, losing Kyle Mayers for 0 in the first over. Wayne Parnell then removed Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya in the fourth over to push Lucknow further behind in the contest.

However, Marcus Stoinis along with skipper Rahul then stitched a perfect rescue work, adding 76-run for the third wicket, before Karn Sharma (Impact Substitute) removed the Aussie for 65(30). Rahul then returned to the pavilion in the next over but what happened next put the match entirely in LSG's favour.

Nicholas Pooran along with Impact Substitute Ayush Badoni added 84 runs for the sixth wicket in 35 balls, before Mohammed Siraj dismissed Pooran for 62 off 19 balls.

Badoni was removed in the 19th over for 30(24) as RCB took the match to the final ball of the contest. With five required in the final over, Harshal Patel removed two batters and had a chance to push the match in the Super Overs with the final LSG pair batting in the middle.

However, he failed to inflict a run-out at the non-striker's end in the final ball, following which Dinesh Karthik fumbled behind the stumps as Ravi Bishnoi along with Avesh Khan got LSG home.

Earlier, Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis gave RCB a solid platform as the pair added 96 for the opening wicket after being invited to bat. Amit Mishra broke the partnership by getting rid of Kohli for 61(44) in the 12th over. Maxwell then joined his skipper and added 115 runs in just 50 balls for the second wicket.

Maxwell was cleaned up by Mark Wood for 59(29) in the final over, while Du Plessis returned unbeaten on 79(46).