Lucknow Super Giants admitted they were 10-15 runs short of a par score after they suffered a five-wicket loss against Chennai Super Kings at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow in the ongoing IPL 2025 on Monday.

LSG posted 166 runs on the board after MS Dhoni decided to bowl first. LSG’s top three – Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, and Nicholas Pooran, who all have been brilliant for the franchise, were dismissed cheaply.

Rishabh Pant scored his maiden IPL fifty of the season as he scored 63 runs off 49 balls but the other batters could not contribute much as they kept losing wickets at regular intervals.

On the other hand, LSG bowlers were able to come back stronger in the middle overs after Rachin Ravindra and debutant Shaik Rasheed added 52 runs for the opening alliance.

CSK captain MS Dhoni added the finishing touches as he scored a fine cameo of 11-ball 26 whereas Shivam Dube scored an unbeaten 43 off 37 balls.

Rishabh Pant said in the post-match presentation, “We feel that as a team we were 10 to 15 runs short, we kept losing wickets when the momentum was with us. We had to keep stitching in partnerships. The wicket was stopping a bit, but we could have got 15 runs more I feel. I am feeling better with each and every game, but sometimes it doesn’t come off. Slowly getting into my rhythm, taking every match at a time.”

Meanwhile, Ravi Bishnoi returned with impressive figures of 2-18 in the three overs he bowled but Pant didn’t back the leg-spinner in the last five overs despite MS Dhoni being at the crease.

He added, “We discussed with a lot of players, but we couldn’t take him (Bishnoi) deeper, that (bowling his last over) didn’t happen today. Bowling in the powerplay has been a concern for us, but we can pull things back. As a team we are looking to take the positives from each and every game and we are trying to improve.”

Lucknow Super Giants will next take on Rajasthan Royals at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur on Saturday.