The much anticipated 18th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is set to kick off on March 22 (Saturday) with the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to lock horns against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the opening match of the competition.
All ten teams have formed a match-winning squad for the upcoming season. Most of the franchises had their plans in place ahead of the mega auction which was held in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in November last year.
The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will start their 2025 campaign against the Delhi Capitals (DC) on March 24 (Monday). The Sanjiv Goenka-owned franchise pocketed Rishabh Pant for a whopping ₹27 crores to make him the costliest-ever buy in the history of the IPL.
The Super Giants made their IPL debut in 2022 and finished third in their first two editions. However, with Pant taking over the reins, LSG would hope to make a strong turnaround in 2025 after finishing seventh in the points table in 2024.
On that note, we have predicted three top run-getters for LSG in the upcoming edition of the IPL:
Markram was snapped up by the LSG for his base price of ₹2 crores in the mega auction. Given the class Markram possesses, it was certainly a steal deal for the Super Giants. He is one of the most consistent run scorers for South Africa across formats and also the franchises he has played for.
He is expected to bat in the middle order for LSG and if he performs anywhere close to his potential, he could end up as one of the leading run scorers for the franchise. Markram plays according to the game situation and given the style of his batting, he might end up scoring a truckload of runs for LSG in the 2025 season.
One of the most destructive batters in world cricket at the moment, Nicholas Pooran would walk into any playing XI of a T20 side. He tends to take a bit of time initially but once he is set, Pooran decimates any bowling attack on his day.
The southpaw has performed in most of the T20 leagues across the globe. He recently scored 301 runs in the ILT20 and performed in crunch situations to take his side home.
Pooran might be asked to bat at the top of the order but can also handle the middle-order duties. He is expected to be an integral part of the LSG unit and could end up being one of their top run-getters in the 2025 edition.
# 1. Rishabh Pant
The costliest ever buy in IPL history, Rishabh Pant was snapped up by the Lucknow Super Giants for ₹27 crores in the mega auction. He has been appointed as the captain of the franchise and will play an important role both as a batter and a keeper.
Pant scored 446 runs in 13 matches for the Delhi Capitals in the previous season of the IPL and was instrumental in India’s triumphant T20 World Cup campaign in June. He is one of the most explosive batters going around and has been a consistent run scorer in this format. He could end up scoring the most runs for LSG in the upcoming season.
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Edited by Vaishnavi Iyer
