Nicholas Pooran fifty: Nicholas Pooran proved Rishabh Pant to be a ‘foolish’ captain, hitting fifty in 16 balls at number three.

New Delhi: IPL 2026 has been disappointing so far for Lucknow Supergiants, captained by Rishabh Pant. The team has taken the field against Mumbai Indians in its 9th match. Of the 8 matches played so far, Lucknow has won only 2, due to which it is at the bottom of the points table. Captain Pant is also being considered responsible to some extent for the plight of Lucknow this season, which Nicholas Puran proved by hitting fifty in just 16 balls against Mumbai Indians.

Actually, at the beginning of this season, Rishabh Pant himself had decided to bat in the top order, but his strategy did not prove to be effective. Nicholas Puran was batting at number 5 due to batting above Pant, but in the match against Mumbai, he came to play at number three and scored 63 runs in 21 balls. In this innings, Puran hit 8 sixes and 1 four.

Puran’s record at number three has been excellent

Let us tell you that Nicholas Puran has an excellent record at number three for Lucknow Supergiants. Puran scored 524 runs in IPL 2025 at a strike rate of 196.25. Puran’s five half-century innings were also included in this. Due to change in batting order of Puran in IPL 2026, he has scored only 145 runs in 9 matches. Captain Pant himself has not been able to show anything special while batting in the top order.

Questions are being raised on Pant’s captaincy

Rishabh Pant is the most expensive player in IPL history. Last season, Lucknow team had bought Pant for Rs 27 crore, but the team could not even reach the playoffs under his captaincy. The condition of the franchise is the same in IPL 2026 also. After the match against Mumbai, Lucknow will have 6 more matches left. In such a situation, the team will have to win at least 5 matches to reach the playoffs.