‘This side look like a team to beat’- Morne Morkel heaps praise on this franchise

One of the two newly introduced franchises in the Indian T20 League 2022, Lucknow has been nothing short of outstanding in their debut season this year. In 3 matches, they have managed to win 2 games and, thus, are sitting at number three on the points table. After suffering a 6-wicket defeat at the hands of Gujarat, Lucknow bounced back brilliantly to register two consecutive wins.

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KL Rahul and Co. beat Hyderabad by 12 runs in their last match. Riding on a sensational knock from KL Rahul (68 off 50), Lucknow managed to score 169 runs in the first innings. Deepak Hooda (51 off 33), later, also gave him valuable support with the bat. However, with due coming in the second innings, Lucknow had to bowl really well to win the match.

Hyderabad fought hard with the bat but Lucknow kept picking wickets at regular intervals. Avesh Khan led the way with the ball. He picked the most important wickets both in the power play as well in the death overs. Khan finished his spell with sensational figures of 4 for 24 runs in 4 overs, helping his side restrict Hyderabad to 157 runs in the second innings. The likes of Jason Holder (3 for 34) and Krunal Pandya (2 for 27) also returned with impressive figures with the ball.

Former South African cricketer, Morne Morkel was full of praise for Lucknow’s bowling unit for defending a below-par total. Speaking on the Cricket Live on Star Sports, he said,

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"It was a fantastic effort from Lucknow to defend against a classy Hyderabad batting line-up (in their previous game). They held their nerves and bowled a good line to not let the opposition batters get away. So, Lucknow are looking like a team to beat."

"Lucknow have got three fantastic bowlers to bowl at the back end (against Sunrisers Hyderabad). Avesh Khan picked up two crucial wickets in the 18th over, that was a make or break (situation) in the game. AJ Tye is showing his skills and Jason Holder was also brilliant at the close of the innings. So, obviously, I am relieved from a bowler's perspective that teams are winning defending the total." he added.

Lucknow are slated to play their next match against Delhi on Thursday at DY Patil Sports Academy in Mumbai.