Lucknow, April 25 (IANS) Lucknow Super Giants are set to face Kolkata Knight Riders in their eighth match of the Indian Premier League 2026 season on Sunday evening at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium.

LSG head into the fixture after a setback against Rajasthan Royals, a result that has put them under pressure in the standings. Despite the loss, there were encouraging signs from the bowling unit, which delivered disciplined performances. Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav and Mohsin Khan stood out with economical spells.

Led by Rishabh Pant, the Super Giants have had an inconsistent first half of the campaign and now face a crucial phase. With seven league matches remaining, the team will be aiming to string together victories to keep their playoff hopes alive.

Their previous encounter with Kolkata produced a nail-biting finish, with Lucknow edging out a three-wicket win off the final delivery. On that occasion, Mukul Choudhary played a match-winning knock of 54 not out from just 27 balls, smashing seven sixes to guide his side home in dramatic fashion.

For Kolkata, concerns remain around their bowling resources. Injuries to key pacers Harshit Rana and Akash Deep have weakened the attack, while experienced campaigners Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy have yet to consistently hit top form. However, Chakravarthy showed signs of resurgence recently with a three-wicket haul against Rajasthan, offering some optimism for the defending champions.

When: Sunday, April 26, 7:30 PM IST

Where: Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow

Where to watch: The LSG vs KKR match will be broadcast on Star Sports channels, with JioHotstar live-streaming the game.

Squads:

Lucknow Super Giants: Rishabh Pant (C), Aiden Markram, Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke, Mukul Choudhary, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahamad, Arshin Kulkarni, Wanindu Hasaranga, Ayush Badoni, Mohammad Shami, Avesh Khan, M. Siddharth, Digvesh Singh, Akash Singh, Prince Yadav, Arjun Tendulkar, Anrich Nortje, Naman Tiwari, Mayank Yadav and Mohsin Khan

Kolkata Knight Riders: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Manish Pandey, Rovman Powell, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Ramandeep Singh, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Harshit Rana, Umran Malik, Varun Chakaravarthy, Cameron Green, Finn Allen, Matheesha Pathirana, Kartik Tyagi, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Tejasvi Dahiya, Sarthak Ranjan, Rachin Ravindra, Akash Deep, Prashant Solanki, Daksh Kamra

–IANS

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