Ahead of the upcoming edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), former Australia skipper Aaron Finch has said that Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul are going to be Lucknow Super Giants’ biggest strength this year.
Although de Kock will be missing the start of the tournament for Lucknow due to national team’s commitments, he is likely to open the innings with Rahul once he arrives in India for IPL 2023. Both the batsmen played a key role in Lucknow’s march to the playoffs in their maiden IPL season last year.
Rahul and de Kock finished the season as the second and third highest run-scorer in IPL 2022 respectively. While Rahul scored 616 runs with the help of 2 centuries and 4 fifties, de Kock smashed 508 runs with the help of 1 century and 3 fifties.
Aaron Finch analyses LSG’s team combination:
Speaking on Star Sports ahead of the tournament, Aaron Finch analysed LSG’s opening combination and said that de Kock and Rahul complement each other very well.
“They are very different players, and their strengths and weaknesses offset each other. So, I think if they are going to have a big season. I think the home ground advantage for LSG this year,” Aaron Finch said.
Speaking further, the T20 World Cup winning captain spoke about other Lucknow batsmen too. He also stated that Nicholas Pooran will be the player to watch out for.
“Player to watch out for, for Lucknow, will be Nicholas Pooran. They’ve spent a lot of money to get him in the auction. He wasn’t at his best last season, but we know how destructive he can be,” Finch said.
“He’s someone who strikes it at such a high strike rate, particularly early in his innings. So, for me, he is the player to watch out for. The X-factor for me this season for Lucknow I see being Deepak Hooda. He’s someone who has taken the responsibility of batting at number 3. He’s someone who strikes at a good strike rate, particularly in the first 10 balls. He continues to keep being aggressive,” Finch further added.
IPL 2023 is scheduled to begin on March 31. LSG will begin their campaign against Delhi Capitals on April 1.