Lucknow Super Giants’ playoff hopes have taken a serious hit after their 37-run defeat to Punjab Kings in Dharamsala.
With three consecutive losses now, the pressure is firmly on the Rishabh Pant-led side heading into the final stretch of IPL 2025.
Chasing a big 237, LSG could only manage 199/7 in their 20 overs. Once again, their batting crumbled, and their bowling lacked the discipline to contain the opposition.
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The loss leaves them needing to win all their remaining matches to stay in the playoff contention. LSG’s campaign has been patchy and captain Rishabh Pant’s own form has been a concern.
He scored just 18 runs off 17 balls against PBKS - continuing a lean run that now sees him sitting at 128 runs from 11 matches with an average of just over 12 and striking at under 100.
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Their remaining games - against RCB, Gujarat Titans, and Sunrisers Hyderabad - will now decide their fate.
Rishabh Pant on LSG's chances of qualifying for IPL 2025 playoffs
Despite the tough road ahead, Pant maintained a hopeful outlook after the match.
“The dream is still alive. If we're going to win the next three matches, I think definitely we're going to turn around as an amazing team,” said Pant in the post-match interview.
Pant acknowledged that his bowlers gave away far too many runs after choosing to bowl first. Punjab's Prabhsimran Singh hammered 91 runs.
"See, definitely too many runs because. When you're going to drop a few crucial catches at the wrong time, it can hurt you badly. We thought the wicket is going to do more, but I think we didn't pick the length right in the starting, but that's part and parcel of the game," he added.
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Pant also urged the entire batting lineup to contribute, rather than relying solely on the top order.
"It makes sense when your top order is batting really well, but every time they can't do the heavy job for us. Like you said in the starting that we had too many runs to catch up on and that hurt us really badly," he concluded.
LSG will now look to regroup quickly before their do-or-die match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on May 9 at the Ekana Cricket Ground in Lucknow.