IPL 2023 Predictions: LSG vs RCB

Royal Challengers Bangalore will be taking on the Lucknow Super Giants in the 15th match of TATA IPL 2023 at Bengaluru.

This will be the third game for Bangalore this season while Lucknow will be playing their fourth one.

Royal Challengers Bangalore have won one of their two games this season so far, and are placed in the seventh position on the points table with a net run rate of -1.256.

On the other hand, Lucknow Super Giants have won two of their three games this season so far, and are placed second on the points table with a net run rate of +1.358.

Royal Challengers Bangalore lost their last match to Kolkata Knight Riders by 81 runs while Lucknow Super Giants won their last game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad by 5 wickets.

These two teams have met twice in the IPL so far, where Bangalore managed to win both games.

The surface at M. Chinnaswamy stadium is a batting-friendly one. This ground is considered as a batter’s paradise and a bowler’s nightmare.

For RCB, Reece Topley has been ruled out of the tournament because of a shoulder injury.

For the previous game, David Willey replaced him in the XI. Despite a defeat in the last game, the franchise could stick to the same combination.

Quinton de Kock is available for selection but he didn’t find a place in the team for LSG against SRH.

The South African might be slotted in now. Mark Wood and Avesh Khan would be back if they are declared fit.

The wickets may help the spinners during the course of the game.

It is a small ground and the boundaries range between 55-59 meters behind the square, 58-65 meters in front of the square, and 68-71 meters straight.

Average 1st innings score: 

The average first-innings score on this wicket is 160 runs.

Record of chasing teams: 

The team batting second has a great record here. They have maintained a winning percentage of 80 on this ground.

Royal Challengers Bangalore Playing XI:

Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis (c), Dinesh Karthik (wk), Glenn Maxwell, Michael Bracewell, Shahbaz Ahmed, David Willey, Karn Sharma, Harshal Patel, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj<>Anuj Rawat

Lucknow Super Giants Predicted Playing XI:

KL Rahul (c), Kyle Mayers/Quinton de Kock, Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Romario Shepherd/Mark Wood, Krunal Pandya, Amit Mishra<>Ayush Badoni, Yash Thakur/Avesh Khan, Jaydev Unadkat, Ravi Bishnoi

Key Players:

Mark Wood is a right-arm fast bowler from Lucknow Super Giants. He has hunted 5 wickets in this tournament so far.

Krunal Pandya is a left-handed batsman and left-arm orthodox spinner from Lucknow Super Giants. He has smashed 58 runs and grabbed 3 wickets in this tournament so far.

Lucknow Super Giants also have a strong batting squad in their team. Kyle Mayers and KL Rahul are opening the batting with Deepak Hooda, Marcus Stoinis, Romario Shepherd, and Nicholas Pooran in the middle order.

For RCB, Faf du Plessis is showing intent from the outset when he walks out to bat. His form has been pretty good as he displayed that in the first game. He could be the top batter of the match.

They also have batters like Virat Kohli, Michael Bracewell, Glenn Maxwell, Dinesh Karthik and Anuj Rawat who are potential match winners.

The new ball is going to be crucial as the initial part is only when the bowlers are expected to get some help.

In the powerplay, Mohammad Siraj is bowling beautifully. The pacer would play a crucial role in this contest.

Who will win

RCB will be hurting after the loss to KKR. We expect a strong bounce back from them. Also, the crowd at the the Chinnaswamy stadium will be egging them on to win.

Also, their bowling will regroup and we expect a strong focussed performance, especially from Siraj who went for a lot of runs.

So, we expect RCB to come out as winners.