A win-deprived Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) take on defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Match 50 of the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL).
LSG are currently at the bottom of the points table, with just two wins to their name, and are on a six-match losing streak. RCB, on the other hand, are third in the standings, with 12 points from nine matches. They recently lost to the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad to end their two-match winning run in the tournament.
LSG vs RCB: Toss Update
To the delight of the crowd, RCB won the toss and decided to bowl first in Lucknow. Captain Rajat Patidar stated how Ekana Stadium remains a low-scoring ground and will aim to chase down the total posted by LSG in the quickest way possible. The home captain, Rishabh Pant, said that his side has a bit of an injury crisis, making three changes to their playing XI.
LSG vs RCB: Josh Inglis misses out through injury, Arshin Kulkarni to open
Josh Inglis only played his first game for LSG in their previous game against the Mumbai Indians. The Australian international, however, picked up a finger injury at the Wankhede Stadium, which means he misses out against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. In his place, Arshin Kulkarni is expected to open alongside Mitchell Marsh. The Maharashtra batter has played just two games for LSG, all the way back in 2024.
LSG vs RCB: What did the captains say?
Rajat Patidar, RCB Captain
“We will bowl first. It’s not as loud as Chinnaswamy, but it’s still loud. I think we’re gonna get a pretty hard surface, but I’m not sure, it’s a black soil pitch and the past four or five matches here had low scores. We’ll try to restrict them to as low a score as possible. (on the break) It was a good break I would say. And everyone is looking in good frame of mind. And we came together after six or seven days of pretty hard work plus a couple of weeks. As I said, everyone is doing pretty well throughout the tournament and we are looking forward for this game. We’re playing with the same team.”
Rishabh Pant, LSG Captain
“We have a few injuries in our team. So Arshin (Kulkarni) comes in for Inglis, he’s a little injured. Mohsin is also little injured, and Shahbaz (Ahmed) comes in for Sid (Manimaran Siddharth). (Conversations within the side?) The only thing is moving with more clarity. We know we are the top players, but at the same time, when clarity is missing sometimes, it can happen in cricket. So most of the time, the talk is about clarity, and there are a few changes in the batting order, so hopefully we can figure out and take it for the next season. Having a stable environment in T20 cricket is essential, but at the same time, when the changes are needed, you should be able to change something, because every time, doing the same thing might not give you the same outcome. So trying sometimes, especially where we stand now, trying is not a bad option for sure. (Good score on this pitch?) It looks like 180-190 wicket for sure. It’s a better wicket than a lot of the matches for sure.”
LSG vs RCB: Playing XIs
Lucknow Super Giants:
Mitchell Marsh, Arshin Kulkarni, Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant (w/c), Akshat Raghuwanshi, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav
Royal Challengers Bengaluru:
Jacob Bethell, Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (w), Krunal Pandya, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Salam Dar, Josh Hazlewood
