Prerak Mankad, who proved his mettle for Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by helping the team to register a 7-wicket win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), expressed his gratitude to the team management for the chance to bat at No.3 in a must-win IPL 2023 match. LSG surprised one and all when Mankad came out to bat at number three, and he performed admirably for the franchise. With Rahul injured and Deepak Hooda out, Mankad’s emergence has provided them with a reliable Indian batter in the top order.
As per the quotes in India Today, Prerak Mankad said, “It feels amazing to play a big role in the team winning. I am very grateful to the team management and everyone for giving me this huge platform and giving me the opportunity to bat at this number in the order. I have been playing domestic cricket for the last five to six years in all formats. It helped me a lot. And performances there do help any player. I am glad that the team won the game today.”
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Mankad was playing only his second match of the season when he amassed 64 runs in 45 balls. When asked about the match, the middle-order batter, who hit a brilliant unbeaten fifty, said they were just waiting for one or two good overs.
Explaining the same, Prerak Mankad said, “It was a decent wicket and the ball was sticking a bit, especially when the bowlers were preferring cross-seam.” Mankad claimed he was hit by a metal object for the third time after the spectator in question missed twice, resulting in a six-minute stoppage of play. “I just informed the team about it,” he said.
LSG registered a close 7-wicket win over SRH owing to the batting heroics of young Prerak Mankad, Nicholas Pooran, and Marcus Stoinis. Mankad provided a solid foundation for SRH with his outstanding 64 off 45 balls, while Marcus Stoinis scored a quick 40 off 25 balls. Following that, Nicholas Pooran finished the game with an explosive 44 off only 13 balls.
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Glenn Philips, Mayank Markande, and Abhishek Sharma claimed one wicket each. Earlier, SRH chose to bat and began their batting slowly and steadily, but their first wicket came early in the third over, on the first ball. Klaasen scored a brilliant 47 off 29 balls, and Samad contributed 37 off 25 balls to help SRH post a decent total of 182 on the board.
