By Admin 
The Narendra Modi Stadium here on Thursday will play host to the compelling second act of a tale of two captains whose fates in IPL 2025 have diverged dramatically.
The Ekana Stadium was where Lucknow Super Giants’ skipper Rishabh Pant and his Gujarat Titans counterpart Shubman Gill last met. LSG may have claimed the two points on offer then, but there has been a tectonic shift since.
Super Giants, currently seventh, are out of playoff contention, while Titans are perched atop the standings and are eyeing a top-two finish.
Interestingly, the individual trajectories of Pant and Gill have mirrored their teams’ fortunes.
Pant, otherwise a maverick with the bat, has endured a lean run, managing just 135 runs in 11 innings, with a solitary fifty against a beleaguered Chennai Super Kings.
Gill, meanwhile, has been the embodiment of poise and productivity, amassing 601 runs and sitting just behind teammate B. Sai Sudharsan (617) on the Orange Cap leaderboard.
Making early inroads will be key to LSG’s success.
Gill’s armour has very few chinks. Sai Sudharsan, however, has been found wanting when countering seam movement, which could potentially offer an opening for Prince Yadav or new recruit Will O’Rourke to exploit.
In fact, 50 per cent of deliveries that have deviated after hitting the deck ended up inducing a false shot from the southpaw.
The absence of their highest wicket-taker, Digvesh Rathi, will hurt Pant and Co.
The leggie received a match suspension following a heated altercation with Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Abhishek Sharma.
Published – May 21, 2025 09:30 pm IST