### Key match stats PBKS vs LSG
**Pitch Stats – Maharashtra Stadium**

Average first innings score: 172
Average first innings winning score: 181
Average powerplay score: 41
Win % batting 1st vs batting 2nd: 57% / 43%

**Team form PBKS vs LSG**
PBKS – WLLWL
LSG – WLWLW
Recent meetings: n/a

### PBKS vs LSG Preview

![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 07.22.33.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/48TofRf1fa7KJn5qc1mTdyPogx5Pq3pWWVbNuPZyag7j7d6e7vLMACxFhcHo5RMsoY.png)


LSG come into this match holding onto the much coveted 4th place thanks to 5 wins so far in their debut season. 

At the same time their form has been patchy to say the least with their position in the table undoubtedly helped by the fact that they've already played and beaten the hapless Mumbai Indians twice so far this season. 

If this were a football match then no doubt you'd hear the chants of "can we play you every week" drifting across the ground but sadly for LSG fans the answer would be no, you've had your fill of points from the bottom club and now you'll need to turn it on against some tougher opposition. 

Indeed, in both those wins against Mumbai it was the brilliance of KL Rahul rather than a collective effort with the bat that secured them victory. The LSG skipper returns against the side that he left at the end of last season and so far not much seems to have changed in regards the importance of his runs for either franchise. 

|Season|Total runs|% of team's overall runs|
|-|-|-|
|2022|368|26.6%|
|2021|626|29.1%|
|2020|670|28.7%|

*KL Rahul's % of total runs contributed to team over the last 3 seasons*

Of course, KL Rahul's runs at the top of the order for Punjab weren't enough to get them into the playoffs so a few of the Lucknow batsmen will need to up their games in the second half of the season if they are to ensure a different outcome. 

Punjab Kings meanwhile seemed to benefit from having had a relatively long gap in between matches as they secured a comfortable victory against CSK in their last outing. It was certainly a more measured start to the innings from their top order who prior to that had been very hit and miss in IPL 2022. 

If the pitch we saw in the last match here at Pune is anything to go by then both sides will want to employ a similarly conservative approach at the top of the order. Both Rajasthan and RCB batsmen found a little bit of uneven pace and bounce in the Maharashtra track on Tuesday as they played out a low scoring thriller. 

|Venue|Balls per 6 hit|
|-|-|
|Maharashtra|14.4|
|Wankhede|15.5|
|Brabourne|16.5|
|DY Patil|16.9|

*Average number of balls bowled per 6 hit during IPL 2022*

Equally we've seen that this venue can deliver some high scoring, particularly given the relatively short boundaries on offer, a fact that a few of the big hitters on both sides will be keen to exploit. 

### PBKS vs LSG head to head

**LSG bowling vs PBKS batting**

The linchpin of the PBKS batting line-up is undoubtedly Shikhar Dhawan. If he gets in then PBKS have the players to bat around him and put winning runs on the board. If he falls early then no one else in the PBKS squad has yet shown the experience or know how to building an innings. 

|Opposition|Dhawan Runs|Result|
|-|-|-|
|CSK|88|Won|
|DC|9|Lost|
|SRH|8|Lost|
|MI|70|Won|
|GT|35|Lost|
|CSK|35|Won|
|RCB|43|Won|
|KKR|16|Lost|

*Shikhar Dhawan scores and subsequent results during IPL 2022*

His battle then against the LSG new ball attack will be absolutely crucial. The Super Giants will hope to have Avesh Khan back for this game after he missed the win against Mumbai with what KL Rahul described as a "small niggle" but even without him, LSG have the excellent Dushmantha Chameera who bowled a remarkable spell of 4 overs for just 14 runs in their last game and has a good head to head record against PBKS' main man. 


![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 06.36.54.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/23wgFFcMvfUHwH6zhy29L4aLo5px2esw7AZdhPDdyTC92DvncGJvaMdJecz4CUha2anGa.png)

*Chameera vs Dhawan T20 head to head*

PBKS will also be buoyed by the fact that Shikhar averages just shy of 60 at this venue over his T20 career. 

Of course, Punjab opted to bring back their own Sri Lankan in the form Rajapaksa for the game against Chennai. Having been in good touch for the first part of the season, the left-hander didn't give the innings quite the impetuous that they might have liked so it'll be interesting to see whether they stick with that line-up today. 

PBKS will certainly need depth in their batting against an LSG bowling attack that has been strong at the death so far this season. Jason Holder was particularly impressive against Mumbai and continues to have a happy knack of picking up wickets and disrupting scoring in the later stages of an innings. 


![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 06.48.28.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/23wzxL25UbfkSHCxihAr3qzTh49VT1gUtoiMSCBZjDucm7enPzHZT14WBgLPMvh6BjRcN.png)

*Jason Holder death bowling stats for IPL 2022*

**PBKS bowling vs LSG batting**

Punjab will be hoping that Kagiso Rabada can do some early damage against this LSG top order including against their captain and star batsmen KL Rahul. He's dismissed KL on 2 occasions in previous meetings and has a similarly good record against Manish Pandey who continues to struggle at number 3. 


![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 06.58.38.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/23wC3iJnScG3QJu9qDWYeq1eent5uQEi5E2JJCNYFNjN5rzYxnDUWjC4cCwZuKYHeyp4T.png)

*Rabada combined head to head vs KL Rahul and Manish Pandey*

As mentioned above, the decision to bring back Rajapaksa forced PBKS to drop an overseas bowler and include the likes of Sandeep Sharma. Sharma bowled 3 very good overs against CSK before returning towards the back end of the innings and getting hit for runs. He does however have a strong record in T20 matches played in Pune. 

![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 07.01.57.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/23wgBXg7PjxBW7NTjH7vafumyfDGAyozfaxVqeUD6UbzVsfaB1QiDSU2f5yKbjJPBX6sB.png)

*Sandeep Sharma T20 career stats at Pune*

Having Sandeep in the side also allows Punjab to hold Arsheep Singh back for more overs at the death and that could be crucial against an LSG side that bats deep and scores plenty of runs in the final 5 overs as the graph below shows. 


![Screen Shot 2022-04-28 at 07.04.16.png](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/talesfrmthecrypt/EoARUwM34vCxhbkN6uxQseRL34m3St6SH8q7o3hqVEM8DwrvbXgWJsGRsdXwrCMTf2s.png)

*Run rate at the death for all sides in IPL 2022*

Arshdeep meanwhile has been the most economical seamer at the death during IPL 2022 to date going at just 7.2 runs an over. 2 overs from him in that period at a similar economy could prove crucial to the outcome of this match. 


*All stats used in this blog are from my own database. Images are my own with the exception of [player profiles](https://www.iplt20.com/) and [background images](https://pixabay.com/images/search/cricket%20stadium/) which are used under a [creative commons license](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/2.0/deed.en) or otherwise royalty free*