Chennai Super Kings won the toss and opted to bowl first in their Indian Premier League 2025 match against Lucknow Super Giants at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium on Monday.
Lucknow captain Rishabh Pant said it was an easy decision to bowl first at Lucknow, where the wicket tends to slow down in the first innings and gets better as the match progresses. "It's just amazing. We would have bowled first. In Lucknow, it's slower in the first innings, gets better gradually. We just need to give our 100%," Pant said. "We don't want to give CSK an opening and we want to go out and play good cricket."
Pant made one change to his side with Mitchell Marsh returning in place of Himmat Singh.
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Meanwhile, Chennai's captain MS Dhoni acknowledged the team's strong fan support and expressed confidence in their ability to turn around their form. "We are blessed, we get good support wherever we go. 'Thank you' to all the fans. We want to bowl first, there's a chance of dew here. The wicket gets better in the second innings. It’s important to set the right temperament," Dhoni said. "We haven’t been consistent with our batting, but with the ball, we have a strong back. It’s important to have a positive mindset and play those big shots. It’s just a matter of time."
Chennai made two changes to their lineup with Jamie Overton and Shaik Rasheed coming in for Ravichandran Ashwin and Devon Conway.
Playing XI and Impact Substitutes
Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Rishabh Pant (captain and wicketkeeper), David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Akash Deep, Digvesh Singh Rathi.Impact Sub: Ravi Bishnoi, Prince Yadav, Shahbaz Ahmed, Matthew Breetzke, Himmat Singh.
Chennai Super Kings (Playing XI): Shaik Rasheed, Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi, Vijay Shankar, Ravindra Jadeja, Jamie Overton, MS Dhoni (captain and wicketkeeper), Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Khaleel Ahmed, Matheesha Pathirana.Impact Sub: Shivam Dube, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Ramakrishna Ghosh, Sam Curran, Deepak Hooda.