Picture Credit: BCCI/IPL
On Friday, April 5, the five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI) are taking on Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow in IPL 2025. While the Men in Blue are coming from an eight-wicket win against defending champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), the Rishabh Pant-led LSG were handed an eight-wicket drubbing at the hands of Punjab Kings.
However, both teams are having a similar season so far, either one will get better of the other tonight. For the unversed, MI skipper Hardik Pandya won the toss and elected to bowl first. The MI skipper’s decision came to be a decisive one as he starred, picking his first-ever five-fer in T20 cricket. After putting LSG to post the score first on the board, Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markran gave a brisk start at the top of the order.
Hardik Pandya becomes first captain to pick five-fer in IPL history
However, Vignesh Puthur broke the crucial partnership, Nicholas Pooran was the new man to join Markram in the middle. The wicketkeeper-batter’s stay in the middle did not last long as MI skipper removed the West Indies international in his very first over. The Indian veteran then dismissed star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who hasn’t had a great outing for the franchise yet in the tournament.
Coming out to bowl his third over and the 18th of the LSG innings, Hardik Pandya got the big wicket of Aiden Markram, who departed having scored 38-ball 53. Things did not end here for the Mumbai skipper as in his final over, he got better of Akash Deep, completing his first five-wicket haul in T20 cricket.
With this, he now sits just at second place after late Shane Warner (57) with 30 wickets in the list of most IPL wickets as captain. Moreover 5/35 is now his best figures in T20 cricket, bettering his previous of 4/16 which came against New Zealand in Ahmedabad in 2023.
