PBKS vs LSG: ‘Happy to do whatever my team needs,’ says Lucknow’s Stoinis

Marcus Stoinis insisted he was happy to bat wherever or bowl whenever the team needed him after playing a central role in Lucknow Super Giants’ crushing 56-run victory over Punjab Kings in Mohali on Friday.

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Australia all-rounder Stoinis top-scored for Lucknow with a 40-ball 72, helping the side post a mammoth 257/5 on the board, before dismissing opposition captain Shikhar Dhawan in the very first over of the Punjab chase, with the home team getting bundled out for 201 in reply.

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“I do enjoy the responsibility of batting a bit lower and seeing the game home. Part of my journey is batting at every position. Bowl the first over, bowl the last over. I’m happy to do whatever my team needs,” Stoinis, who was adjudged the Player of the Match, said during the post-match presentation ceremony at the IS Bindra PCA Stadium in Mohali.

Stoinis had hurt his finger during the 38th match of the season, raising concerns for LSG over his participation in the second half of the 16th edition of the league.

The all-rounder, however, insisted there wasn’t much to worry about at the moment. “The finger is alright. It is better now. We will get scans done,” said Stoinis after the game.

LSG skipper KL Rahul, meanwhile, said the six-day break after their narrow loss against defending champions Gujarat Titans helped them bounce back in style.

“The last game was a bit of a downer and did hurt a lot of us as a team but we had three or four days break after that which was good. Everyone got their minds off cricket and just rested,” said Rahul, who had led the Punjab Kings franchise before signing with LSG.

“Getting 250 or 260 speaks very highly of our batting. Those first two or three overs, Kyle put pressure on their bowling and that set the tone for us and we took it from there,” added Rahul.

Punjab captain Dhawan, who returned to action after missing three consecutive matches due to a shoulder injury, rued conceding too many runs to the Lucknow batters.

“We gave too many runs away and we paid the price for it. I feel that the strategy to play with one extra fast bowler backfired whereas KL used an extra spinner. I tried to change something and it didn’t work but that’s all right. It’s a good learning for me and we’ll come back better stronger,” said Dhawan.

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