Marcus Stoinis produced a sensational century as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) recorded their second victory over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the span of five days, prevailing by six wickets and three balls remaining. The triumph was achieved in pursuit of a mammoth target of 211 set by CSK, marking the highest successful chase at the iconic Chepauk stadium in T20 cricket history.
Opening the batting for LSG, Stoinis showcased his versatility by adapting to the No. 3 position and spearheading the pursuit with an outstanding unbeaten knock of 124 runs off just 63 deliveries. The Australian all-rounder’s century, studded with 11 boundaries and eight maximums, was reached off 56 balls, mirroring the pace at which Ruturaj Gaikwad had achieved his century earlier in the match.
Earlier, CSK captain Gaikwad anchored the innings with an unbeaten 108 off 60 balls, while Shivam Dube provided a late surge with a quickfire 66 off 27 deliveries. The Super Kings’ total of 210 for 4 appeared formidable, but Stoinis, aided by Nicholas Pooran and Deepak Hooda, silenced the roaring Chennai crowd with their relentless assault.
Despite losing Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul in the powerplay, LSG maintained momentum through a steady partnership between Rahul and Stoinis. Devdutt Padikkal, playing as an Impact Player, struggled to find fluency, but Stoinis remained unfazed, striking boundaries at regular intervals to keep LSG in contention.
The dew factor played a significant role in the second half of the game, favoring LSG’s chase. The slippery conditions aided Stoinis in dispatching deliveries with increased power and precision. Pooran’s quickfire cameo of 20 runs off just 8 balls further accelerated LSG’s progress.
With 32 runs required from two overs, Stoinis and Hooda exhibited nerves of steel, collecting three boundaries off the first four deliveries from Matheesha Pathirana. The equation was reduced to 17 runs off six balls, and Stoinis took center stage once again. He launched Mustafizur Rahman over long-on for a towering six before drilling the next delivery straight down the ground for four. A fortunate boundary past short third and a crucial no-ball from Mustafizur further eased the pressure. The match-winning blow came off the final delivery of the contest, as Stoinis pulled a short ball over backward square leg to seal a memorable victory for LSG.
The result propelled LSG to fourth place in the standings with ten points from eight matches, while CSK remained in fifth position with eight points after a similar number of games.
