Lucknow, May 7, 2026, 20:41 IST
Mitchell Marsh tore into Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s attack, putting Lucknow Super Giants firmly ahead before the weather intervened once more in Thursday’s IPL 2026 fixture at Ekana Stadium. LSG raced to 95 without loss in nine overs. Marsh stood tall, unbeaten on 76 from just 32 deliveries, while Arshin Kulkarni held at 17 not out.
RCB skipper Rajat Patidar called right at the toss, opting to bowl, but things turned tricky fast once Marsh got going with the bat. Here’s what’s at stake: RCB, if they pull off a win, jump past Sunrisers Hyderabad and seize the table’s top spot. LSG? Still stuck at the bottom, dragging just four points from nine matches.
Marsh blasted his way to a fifty off just 20 deliveries—his quickest in the IPL—while Lucknow piled up 68 runs in the powerplay, with no wickets lost during those opening six overs under fielding restrictions. Cricbuzz flagged that as Lucknow’s best powerplay score of the season and noted Marsh launched six sixes in that stretch, the most ever by an LSG batter in an IPL innings.
At the toss, Patidar opted to bowl, pointing to the “surface looks good” and confirming Bengaluru stuck with the same XI. Jacob Bethell stayed up top alongside Virat Kohli. The main bowling lineup: Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Krunal Pandya, Suyash Sharma, and Rasikh Salam. NDTV Sports
Lucknow made changes to their lineup. According to Rishabh Pant, “some injuries” meant Josh Inglis and Mohsin Khan missed out; Arshin Kulkarni and Shahbaz Ahmed slotted into the XI, while Avesh Khan appeared only in the list of impact substitutes instead of making the starting lineup. myKhel
Pant described it as a “180-190 wicket”—basically, he figured a solid first-innings total could land somewhere in that bracket. Marsh’s burst quickly put that estimate to the test, but then the rain came, halting momentum and leaving LSG in a tricky spot: run rate healthy, yet the foundation not quite firm enough. NDTV Sports
RCB faced a lineup dilemma. Kris Srikkanth, the ex-India skipper, criticized the lack of a “swashbuckler at the top” after Phil Salt’s exit and pushed for Devdutt Padikkal to open, suggesting Bethell drop down in the order. Still, RCB kept Bethell at the top. The Times of India
Bhuvneshwar Kumar reached a landmark in the same game, becoming the first pace bowler to notch up 200 IPL appearances. Calling it “indeed special,” he told TOI, which also noted he topped the Purple Cap chart with 17 wickets from nine matches before play began. The Times of India
Now it’s the weather, not player form, shaping the match. Rain first stopped play at 12-0, the field too wet to continue. After nine overs, another heavier shower forced a second halt; if delays drag on, RCB’s chase could be squeezed by reduced overs.
Bengaluru still chasing control at the top, with a solid season so far. Lucknow, meanwhile, finally found some early momentum through Marsh, a rarity in what’s been a faltering run. Maybe the next big moment arrives under the covers instead of from the bowling attack.
