In the opening game of IPL 2025 in Lucknow, Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer chose to bowl first upon winning the toss. Although uncertain about the pitch conditions, he predicted that dew would play a role as the match progressed into the evening.
Rishabh Pant, the captain of Lucknow Super Giants, was content with batting first. LSG did not alter their playing eleven, while PBKS made a single change by substituting Afghanistan allrounder Azmatullah Omarzai with New Zealand fast bowler Lockie Ferguson. Interestingly, their previous match hero Vijaykumar Vyshak was not included in the starting bowling lineup, raising questions about who their probable Impact Sub could be. It is possible that Nehal Wadhera may take on this role.
Ferguson is set to make his long-awaited return to competitive play, having been out of action since February due to a hamstring injury sustained while playing for Desert Vipers in the UAE’s ILT20. As a result, he was unable to participate in the Champions Trophy. Known for his pace and bounce on red-soil pitches, Ferguson boasts a strong track record against Nicholas Pooran in T20 cricket, taking four wickets in just 17 balls at an impressive strike rate of 7.05. Another player who has caught attention with his speed is Prince Yadav, making him a top contender for the team’s Impact Sub role following his impressive performance against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
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The lineup for Punjab Kings includes Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh as the wicket-keeper, Shreyas Iyer as captain, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Suryansh Shedge, Marco Jansen, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal, and Arshdeep Singh.
Some possible impact substitutes are: Vyshak Vijaykumar, Pravin Dubey, Nehal Wadhera, Harpreet Brar, and Vishnu Vinod.
The players for Lucknow Super Giants include Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant as the captain and wicket-keeper, Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, and Ravi Bishnoi.
The available impact substitute options are Prince Yadav, M Siddharth, Shahbaz Ahmed, Himmat Singh, and Akash Singh.
