IPL: Pant says injuries of key players made the going tough for Lucknow

LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS captain Rishabh Pant has admitted it was difficult for his side to fill the void created by the absence of key bowlers as the team bowed out of the race to Indian Premier League playoffs.

Lucknow's six-wicket loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad on Monday (19) in Lucknow knocked them out of reckoning for a top-four finish.

The injuries to Mohsin Khan, Avesh Khan, Akash Deep and Mayank Yadav put the bowling department of Lucknow under tremendous strain.

"Definitely it could have been one of our best seasons but coming into the tournament we had a lot of gaps, injuries and as a team we decided to not talk about that, but it became difficult to fill those gaps for us,” Pant told the broadcaster after their loss to SRH here.

While they signed Shardul Thakur after the season began and the likes of Avesh and Akash returned, Mayank could only feature in a couple of games before being ruled out due to an injury again.

"The way we planned the auction, if we would have had the same bowling.. but this is cricket, sometimes things go your way and sometimes they don't."

"We have a strong batting line up, have enough firepower and that is the biggest positive for the season," said Pant, who himself endured a horror season as a batter.

Pant said Lucknow could not cope with the pressure once the race to playoffs heated up.

“The first half of the season we played really well but the second half it became tougher and tougher to catch up with the teams on the brighter side," he said.

Gujarat enters playoffs

Meanwhile Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill was pleased that his side had booked their place in the Indian Premier League playoffs with a 10-wicket win over Delhi on Sunday (18).

However, he said it was important not to ease up in the final two regular-season games.

Gujarat became the third team to qualify for the next round after Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings. The top four teams at the end of the regular season make the playoffs.

"It's a great feeling to secure qualification, but we still have two key games ahead and it's important to carry momentum into the playoffs," said Gill.

"As a captain, I try to think like a batter while I'm out there. Last year taught me a lot, especially how to manage the game in the backend."

While Gujarat have booked their place in the playoffs there is still a lot riding on their final two games, with a top-two spot in the standings offering two chances to reach the final.

Gujarat top the table on 18 points, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings both just one point behind.

Mumbai Indians (14 points) and Delhi (13 points) meet on Wednesday in a potential eliminator while Lucknow Super Giants, on 10 points, are still in the running as they have three matches left to play.