IPL 2024 Spotlight: Match 34 Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings Stats Preview And Approaching Milestones

Lucknow Super Giants take on Chennai Super Kings in match 34 of the Indian Premier League 2024 season at the Ekana Stadium on Friday, April 19. In the ongoing IPL season, the Super Giants have won three and lost three matches. LSG are currently in fifth place in the points table. On the other hand, the Super Kings have won four and lost two matches so far. CSK are currently in third place in the points table. LSG had also won 13 out of 13 games in a row while defending scores of 160 or more. They had won two games at the Ekana Stadium, but all of this came to an end when Delhi Capitals humbled them in front of the home crowd. CSK would be looking to take advantage of LSG's recent momentum.

LSG top-order faces a massive challenge against resurgent CSK

The recent LSG games against Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders have exposed their batting troubles. Quinton de Kock has fallen early while captain KL Rahul has been dismissed after promising starts. Marcus Stoinis at No. 4 has been inconsistent. The top-order failure has meant that Nicholas Pooran has been expected to do the heavy lifting in the shaky middle order. Coming at No. 5, Pooran has smashed 12 of the 15 sixes LSG have hit during the back end. Their batting average in the powerplay this season is 25.66, and at the back end is 10.04, the lowest among all teams in IPL 2024.

The current scenario has forced Lucknow Super Giants to get back to Ekana's batting and pace-friendly red-soil pitch, the one LSG used in their first match against Punjab Kings when they successfully defended 199. On the flip side, the defending champions, Chennai Super Kings, have been high on confidence with back-to-back wins. CSK's fast bowlers have been among their biggest positives this IPL season, and their batters led by Ruturaj Gaikwad have also joined the party in high-scoring encounters. Given their current form and the match-winners at their disposal, the Super Kings won't mind the conditions at Ekana Stadium.

Meanwhile, here's a look at the stats and numbers game ahead of the Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings clash:

Head-to-Head:

LSG and CSK have met each other 3 times in the Indian Premier League's history, with both Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings winning 1 game each. One game resulted in No result.

Stats That Matter:

1. CSK bowlers have conceded just 7.03 an over in the middle overs, the best among all teams in the middle phase in IPL 2024.

2. Matheesha Pathirana has dismissed Nicholas Pooran three times in three T20 meetings. Pooran has a strike rate of 62.5 against the Srilankan superstar.

3. CSK is the second-best fielding side this IPL season, with a catch success rate of 79.41%, just behind Mumbai Indians. The Super Kings have only dropped seven out of 34 chances so far.

Approaching Milestones:

1 - Daryl Mitchell (99) needs one catch to reach 100 catches in T20.

1 - Moeen Ali (99) needs one catch to reach 100 catches in T20.

3 - KL Rahul (47) needs three more catches to reach 50 catches as a wicketkeeper in IPL.

4 - Deepak Hooda (96) needs four catches to reach 100 catches in T20.

5 - Devdutt Padikkal (95) needs another five sixes to reach 100 sixes in T20s.

5 - MS Dhoni (245) needs another five sixes to reach 250 sixes in the IPL.

6 - Krunal Pandya (44) needs another six catches to reach 50 catches in IPL.

7 - Nicholas Pooran (1493) needs seven runs to complete 1500 runs in the IPL.