Match 30 of the 2025 Indian Premier League season brings us a clash between the Chennai Super Kings and the Lucknow Super Giants at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on April 14, 2025.
For the game, here are our preview and predictions.
The struggling Super Kings head to Lucknow to take on Rishabh Pant and Co in a desperate attempt to put their woeful start to the season behind.
Given all the things that have gone wrong for CSK this season, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s injury may turn out to be a blessing in disguise, as it has brought MS Dhoni back as captain for the five-time IPL champions. Dhoni’s leadership might be just what CSK need to turn their season around, and while they will miss Gaikwad in the batting lineup, especially given how poorly their Indian core has performed, they’ll gain a lot more from Dhoni’s experienced leadership.
Having lost to the Kolkata Knight Riders in their last game, CSK have now gone five straight games without a win. Their biggest concern is the inability of their batters to get going. They tried Rachin Ravindra and Rahul Tripathi at the top, which didn’t work, following which they brought back Devon Conway, who got some runs against the Punjab Kings but at a relatively sluggish rate.
CSK don’t have consistent batters down the order either. They have tried Vijay Shankar, Shivam Dube, and Gaikwad in the middle, but none have been able to step up. With Ravindra Jadeja not in form with the bat and Dhoni a pale shadow of himself, there is not much depth.
With the ball, Khaleel Ahmed has been a positive for CSK, but that’s about it. Their spin trio of Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, and Noor Ahmad has been unable to carve out games for them. Ahmad has been among the wickets, but he has been a tad expensive as well.
On the other hand, the Lucknow Super Giants’ explosive batting lineup is in full flow. Aiden Markram and Mitchell Marsh have been giving LSG a solid platform up top, with Nicholas Pooran’s red-hot form being key later on. With David Miller and Rishabh Pant coming lower down the order, LSG boast plenty of firepower and depth.
Bowling is one area where LSG are lacking a bit, however. They don’t have an experienced or star-studded attack, with Shardul Thakur and Digvesh Rathi being the pick of the bowlers. LSG’s ability to defend totals has been an issue, something they will want to rectify as the race for the playoffs heats up.
The Lucknow ground, like most grounds in India, has plenty of runs on offer but also offers something to the seamers. Looking at the two sides on paper and given their current form, LSG should be the favourites, but we are backing the Chennai Super Kings to take the win here believing Dhoni still has that magic touch to turn things around and target LSG’s bowling deficiencies.
Fantasy XI: Mitchell Marsh, Devon Conway, Nicholas Pooran, Vijay Shankar, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Ravichandran Ashwin, Digvesh Singh, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Noor Ahmad
Venue: Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow
Winners Prediction: Chennai Super Kings
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