Sports
IPL 2022: Too much chopping, changing reason behind Kolkata’s dismal show, feels Pietersen

Former England cricketer Kevin Pietersen reckons constant chopping and changing with the playing eleven has been one of the biggest reasons behind the dismal show of Kolkata Knight Riders in IPL 2022. The Shreyas Iyer-led side started the tournament with three wins before losing five matches on the trot.
Though they won against Mumbai Indians and Sunrisers Hyderabad, Kolkata will need a big win against Lucknow Super Giants on Wednesday at the DY Patil Stadium to keep their playoffs hopes alive.
Also, they have used five new opening pairs and with Ajinkya Rahane out due to hamstring injury, they will need a fresh opening pair against Lucknow.
“Too much of chopping and changing has been a reason for KKR’s dismal show because the players think it’s their last game and they’ve got to perform or they might be out. I don’t think this is the right way to go in this format of the game. This format is about building the players up, giving them the confidence and helping them feel like the team they’re involved in the brand they are associated with, and the band they’re playing for are committed,” said Pietersen on Cricket Live show on Star Sports.
“The players want to feel like they have the commitment, they need to feel like they can give that commitment and I don’t think you give that commitment if there is too much chopping and changing,” added Pietersen.
On the other hand, Lucknow have been a team to beat this season but the KL Rahul-led side has been unable to book a playoffs berth after suffering consecutive defeats to Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals. Pietersen pointed out that Lucknow cannot afford to be complacent at the business end of the tournament, especially when three playoffs spots are still up for grabs.
“It’s serious business now. You can feel as good as you can in the four or five weeks of this tournament but you can feel down in the dumps if you play poorly now at the business end of the tournament. So the guys at the top of the table like Lucknow want to get those two crucial points against Kolkata Knight Riders and secure their playoffs berth.”
Sports
IPL 2025: When and where to watch LSG vs PBKS, head-to-head record

Lucknow, April 1: Lucknow Super Giants will host the Punjab Kings at the the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium on Tuesday in match 13 of the 2025 Indian Premier League campaign.
Led by captain Rishabh Pant, the Super Giants will head into the game brimming with confidence after they defeated SunRisers Hyderabad by five wickets at their home ground.
Having opened their account in IPL 2025, LSG will be looking to continue the winning momentum against the Kings at home.
Punjab Kings began their IPL 2025 campaign with a 11-run win over Gujarat Titans at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday.
The Kings’ top order includes wicketkeeper-batter Prabhsimran Singh, opener Priyansh Arya and newly appointed captain Shreyas Iyer. The likes of Azmatullah Omarzai, Glenn Maxwell, Marcus Stoinis and Shashank Singh are expected to feature in their middle order. In the bowling department, Arshdeep Singh, Marco Jansen, Yuzvendra Chahal and Vijaykumar Vyshak are their key options. Their opening game win against GT was an overall solid performance where Arya and Iyer set the foundation in the first innings and clutch death bowling by Vyshak secured the win
LSG vs PBKS head-to-head record in IPL
LSG have a superior head-to-head record against Punjab Kings in the IPL, having won three of the four matches.
The last time the two sides met, the former registered a 21-run home victory over the Kings in March 2024
Live Streaming details
Venue: The match will take place at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
When: April 1, 7:30 PM IST
Livestream: The clash between Lucknow and Punjab will be live-streamed on JioHotstar app and website
Broadcast: Star Sports Network
Squads:
Lucknow Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), David Miller, Ayush Badoni, Shardul Thakur, Shahbaz Ahmed, Ravi Bishnoi, Digvesh Rathi, Prince Yadav, Manimaran Siddharth, Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh, RS Hangargekar, Akash Maharaj Singh, Avesh Khan, Matthew Breetzke, Aryan Juyal, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Akash Deep, Mayank Yadav, Shamar Joseph, Arshin Kulkarni
Punjab Kings: Josh Inglis(w), Prabhsimran Singh, Shreyas lyer(c), Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Praveen Dubey, Lockie Ferguson, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Yash Thakur, Aaron Hardie, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kuldeep Sen, Priyansh Arya, Suryansh Shedge, Harnoor Singh, Musheer Khan, Pyla Avinash
Sports
IPL 2025: KL Rahul rejoins Delhi Capitals squad ahead of SRH clash

New Delhi, March 29: India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul joined the Delhi Capitals squad in Visakhapatnam on Saturday ahead of their match against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL 2025 season on Sunday.
Rahul missed the DC’s season opener against Lucknow Super Giants last week due to the birth of his first child with actor wife Athiya Shetty. The couple welcomed a baby girl on March 24.
Taking to X, Delhi Capitals shared the video of Rahul’s arrival and wrote, “You’re loved. You’re ours. You’re home. Welcome to Dilli, KLR.”
In another post, the franchise shared a picture of Rahul in DC’s training jersey and captioned the post, “Let the games begin.”
Rahul is expected to make his Delhi debut in Visakhapatnam on Sunday against Sunrisers Hyderabad after being acquired by the franchise for Rs 14 crore in last year’s mega auction.
The Axar Patel-led side started the tournament on a winning note with a thrilling one-wicket win over Rahul’s former franchise Lucknow. Ashutosh Sharma smashed a 31-ball 66 not out to snatch victory from Lucknow’s jaw with a blistering knock studded with five sixes and as many fours.
After the match, Delhi players congratulated Rahul on becoming the new father by doing a ‘Mother’s Lap Baby Swing’ action.
On his move to Delhi, Rahul termed it both exciting and nerve-wracking for him after last year’s auction.
“This is a new experience for me – joining my fourth or fifth IPL franchise. It’s both exciting and nerve-wracking. Every new team brings uncertainties – how the players will gel, how the management operates, and how the fans will react. But looking at our squad and how the management has built this team, we seem to have most areas covered,” said Rahul.
“There’s a great mix of seasoned players and young talent. I am eager to play alongside some incredibly skilled youngsters and learn from them as well. With players like Mitchell Starc, Axar Patel, and Kuldeep Yadav -many of whom I’ve played with before – we have a solid squad. I can’t wait for the IPL to begin.”
In 132 IPL matches, Rahul has amassed 4,683 runs at an average of 45.47. He has also scored four centuries and 37 fifties in the tournament so far after making his debut in 2013.
Sports
IPL 2025: Dhoni should have batted ahead of Ashwin, says Watson

New Delhi, March 29: Former Australia opener Shane Watson feels that MS Dhoni should have batted ahead of Ravichandran Ashwin in Chennai Super Kings’ 197 chase against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Chepauk on Friday
Despite Dhoni’s late 16-ball 30 not out cameo CSK suffered a heavy 50-run defeat – their second straight loss in the season after losing to Mumbai Indians in their season opener.
Dhoni came to bat at No.9 after Ashwin even when Chennai were reeling at 80/6 after 13 overs. The situation was not ideal for Dhoni to inflict a turnaround but he smashed three fours and two sixes in his short stay at the crease.
However, the move to send Dhoni in the fag end of the innings was not welcomed by many including former players, commentators and fans.
“This is exactly what CSK fans come to see – 30 off 16 deliveries from Dhoni. I would have absolutely loved to see him come up the order. In my opinion, he should have batted ahead of Ashwin. Given the game situation, Dhoni could have played like this for another 15 balls. Over the last couple of years, he has consistently shown that he’s still batting beautifully. I truly believe he should be promoted up the order so we can see the full extent of his skills,” Watson said on JioHotstar.
“From a wicket-keeping perspective, he’s still as sharp as ever—whipping the bails off in an instant. That tells me his game is in great shape, and he’s as well-prepared as he possibly can be. If CSK had sent him in earlier, they would have had a better chance of crossing the line. Of course, the crowd absolutely loved what he did tonight, but if he had come in sooner, CSK might have had a stronger shot at victory.”
Watson was also fazed by CSK’s decision to send Rahul Tripathi to open the batting with Rachin Ravindra while also questioning the batting order of Sam Curran.
“It was disappointing to see certain decisions, like Rahul Tripathi opening the batting. Ruturaj Gaikwad is a quality opener, yet he had to come in later. Even one of the shots Ruturaj played – where he gave himself room against Hazlewood – was uncharacteristic. Normally, he stands still and reacts, but this showed he was under pressure. Deepak Hooda, at the moment, just isn’t up to it; he played each ball as if he was trying to survive. Batting Sam Curran at No. 5 was also questionable—I see him as more of a No. 7 batter,” he said.
“Right now, CSK hasn’t got their combinations right, and they need to make a few adjustments. If they persist with this batting line-up, they risk being exposed,” Watson added.
For RCB, it was their first win against CSK at Chepauk since the inaugural edition of the IPL. Skipper Rajat Patidar’s half-century and cameo knocks from Phil Salt (32), Virat Kohli (31) and Devdutt Padikkal (27) helped them to post 196/7 in 20 overs which their bowlers successfully defended.
With the win, RCB climbed to the top of the standings with two consecutive victories and will next take on Gujarat Titans on April 2.
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