IPL: Pooran, Mankad, Stoinis take LSG to impossible win

Hyderabad: Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) made an unbelievable comeback in a game against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), where defeat was assured for them. LSGs, who were chasing 183 put forward by SRHs and were 89/2 in 13 overs and asking, hovered over 13 per over.

After the second Ceat Tyres Time Out, the equation was 94 off 42 balls to win, and that was when Prerak Mankad, Nicholas Pooran and Marcus Stoinis changed gears in a display of unbelievable big-hitting to take the side to a seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad with four balls to spare at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Saturday.

While Mankad top-scored with an unbeaten 64 off 45 balls to be the anchor of the chase, Pooran was at his blazing best to be 44 not out off 13 balls, while Stoinis made up for a slow start to score 40 off 25 balls.

Stoinis and Pooran were pivotal in bringing the turning point of the match, smashing 31 runs in the 16th over bowled by Abhishek Sharma. With the win ending a three-game winless streak, Lucknow is now in fourth place in the points table with 13 points, while Hyderabad's playoffs hopes look bleak.

The match was disrupted by a crowd for 10 minutes on an umpire decision of no ball. SRH wicketkeeper-batter Heinrich Klaasen was fined 10% of his match fee, while LSG's Amit Mishra was reprimanded for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct during Saturday's match at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Saturday.