Lucknow (Uttar Pradesh) [India], May 1 : Lucknow Super Giants head coach Justin Langer feels that the Indian Premier League (IPL) is like a World Cup because of the intensity of the competition following their four-wicket win over Mumbai Indians at the Ekana Cricket Stadium.
LSG clinched their sixth win of the season with the help of Marcus Stoinis's 62-run blitz which laid the foundation of success for the hosts.
After LSG's win, they moved to the third spot with 12 points which further reduced the margin of error for teams who are in the race for the playoffs.
While talking about the ongoing season, Langer emphasized the importance of each point and said after the game, "I have been blown away by how brilliant this IPL tournament is. It's a bit like a World Cup. There's no easy games, every point is crucial. We see how tight it is on the table. For us to take those points tonight, really valuable. Most importantly, after our disappointing last loss, I loved how we fought back and that's a sign of a really good team."
LSG suffered an early blow and also endured a middle-order collapse while chasing 145. The experienced Australian star who was recently promoted to no. 3 once again embraced his role and kept the hosts away from the jaws of defeat.
"He's been a real match-winner. Took a good catch early as well. He's just showing us that presence at the top of the order which we probably demanded after the first 4 or 5 games. He's showing that real presence, he's playing well, he's being a match-winner. In T20 cricket, in IPL cricket, in big tournaments, match-winners are crucial if you are going to keep progressing. It's such a tight tournament," Langer added.
While chasing 145, after Arshin Kulkarni's dismissal, MI's star speedster Jasprit Bumrah was kept silent in the powerplay as skipper KL Rahul and Marcus Stoinis tried to help the team recover from the early blow.
Rahul and Stoinis stitched a 58-run stand, which helped them cover the important part of the 145-run chase. Rahul looked rock solid in his 28-run knock before his counterpart Hardik Panday dismissed him.
Stoinis (62) continued to lead the charge with the bat from one end before Mohammad Nabi relied on his experience to end Australia's stay on the crease.
LSG lost Ashton Turner and Ayush Badoni in quick succession, but Nicholas Pooran stayed till the end to clinch the victory for the hosts.
This marked LSG's sixth win of the season and helped them move to the third spot with 12 points in 10 matches. MI stayed in the 9th spot with six points in 12 matches.