It was an 'I was there' moment at the Eden Gardens as a 21-year-old announced himself to the world. Mukul Choudhary played the innings of his life as his 54 off just 27 deliveries guided Lucknow Super Giants to an unlikely three-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders in Kolkata. Chasing a total of 181, LSG were reeling at 128/7 at the end of the 16th over. Just when all hopes seemed to disappear, Mukul Choudhary stood up and delivered the innings that will live long in everyone's mind. Mukul smashed two sixes and a four in Cameron Green's 19th over, before hitting a couple more in the final over, bowled by Vaibhav Arora. The 21-year-old hit a helicopter shot over the cover boundary, a shot that his idol MS Dhoni would have been proud of. Mukul raced to his maiden IPL half-century and secured a famous win for LSG. Who is Mukul Choudhary? Mukul Choudhary is a wicket-keeper batsman who plays for Rajasthan in domestic cricket. The 21-year-old is known for his big hitting at the death overs, and has a strike rate of over 160. Mukul was bought for a whopping Rs 2.6 Crore by the Lucknow Super Giants during the auction, after a bidding war with the Rajasthan Royals. In four games since making his first-class debut against Chhattisgarh in January 2023, Mukul has amassed 103 runs, with a highest score of 45. He scored 35 as an opener in his T20 cricket debut against Jharkhand in October 2023. So far, he has scored 226 runs at an average of 37.66 in seven Twenty20 matches, with a top score of 62 not out. Speaking at the post-match press conferece Mukul admitted that his dad wanted him to become a cricketer and tonight was a big opportunity for him to make a name for himself. "My journey started when my father was not even married; he dreamed that his son had to play cricket. I started at the age group level, but there were no good academies in Sikkim. I played matches in Delhi and Guragaon, and that helped me. God has given me this opportunity; there can be pressure, but it is also an opportunity to make a name for myself." Mukul believes God gave him this opportunity, but he’s the one who made sure to make the most of it. At just 21, he is already a household name and will hope to carry on this momentum and keep winning matches for his team.
10 April,2026 01:43 AM IST | Mumbai | Atharva UpasaniThe Lucknow Super Giants stole a victory from the jaws of defeat at the Eden Gardens. LSG defeated KKR by 3 wickets in a thriller in Kolkata. Mukul Choudhary was the star of the show for the visitors as he single-handedly guided LSG to an iconic victory in an IPL classic. Mukul Choudhary scored 54 runs in just 27 balls to seal a famous victory for LSG. With this win, the Rishabh Pant-led side has won two games in a row. Speaking after the defeat, Ajinkya Rahane praised Mukul for his innings and admitted that the loss was hard to digest. "Tough one to take but proud of the boys for the way we played. Mukul's (Choudhary) knock took it away from us. The execution here and there can happen in the last two overs but credit to Mukul for that partnership. For them, it was nothing to lose, 2 overs 30 runs so it was all about swinging hard. Couple of balls were good balls but he batted brilliantly. When you lose a game it's easy to know what we could have done better. 180 odd on this wicket wasn't easy. Let's give credit to the batter for the way he batted. The intention was to keep Avesh on strike. We had to field five fielders up and it's tough on the bowlers." Rahane said. Pant heaps praise on Mukul Choudhary Winning captain Rishabh Pant was full of praise for the match-winner, Mukul Choudhary. The LSG skipper was delighted with the win and hoped that his team can continue this winning momentum. "When we see him (Mukul) in the nets, when you see someone, you can see that.. When you do it in the match, I have no words to describe. But what a fantastic effort. One thing I make sure is the trust, as a captain and the management, having trust plays a big role. Definitely, it is the character, every match someone is putting their hand, something is building for sure, we don't want to talk too much, but something good is cooking. He has been the senior pro in the team, giving him responsibility and he played an amazing role. He (Shami) is not getting younger, the experience he brings is invaluable. Not only Shami Bhai but the whole bowling unit is doing an amazing job." Pant said
10 April,2026 01:28 AM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentThe Lucknow Super Giants scored 83 runs for the loss of 3 wickets at the halfway stage of their innings. The Rishabh Pant-led franchise is looking to chase KKR's total of 181 runs to register a second win in a row. After a fast start with the bat, LSG lost their way after the dismissal of both their openers. Aiden Markram scored a quickfire 22 runs in 15 balls before being dismissed. Mitch Marsh soon followed after he was caught behind for 15 runs. Rishabh Pant and Ayush Badoni stitched a partnership for the visitors as KKR bowlers squeezed the run flow. Pant guided his team to a memorable win against SRH in the last match, but failed to replicate his form after losing his wicket to Cameron Green. For KKR, Vaibhav Arora was the pick of the bowlers. The right-arm pacer came in as an impact substitute and got both the openers out in the same over. Sunil Narine's four overs will be crucial for KKR's chances in this match. Varun Chakravarthy is still out with an injury sustained in KKR's second match of the season. LSG have a strong batting line-up with Nicolas Pooran and Abdul Samad in their ranks. The visitors will be eager to leave Kolkata with two points and back-to-back wins under their belt. Earlier, KKR scored 181 runs due to the early brilliance of Angkrish Raghuvanshi and a late flourish from Cameron Green and Rovman Powell. Having lost the toss, KKR managed to put a competitive total on the board after a fast start by skipper Ajinkya Rahane. KKR are yet to win a match this season after losing their opening two matches and gaining one point from their third match against PBKS. Confirmed playing XI for both teams: Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(w), Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Navdeep Saini, Kartik Tyagi Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Manimaran Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav
09 April,2026 10:38 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentKolkata Knight Riders (KKR) were restricted to 56/1 at the end of the powerplay by Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), thanks to a disciplined bowling performance. Mohammed Shami and his fellow bowlers kept the KKR batters in check, preventing any early momentum. LSG skipper Rishabh Pant won the toss and opted to bowl first, a decision that proved effective as his bowlers dominated the early stages of the innings. Mohammed Shami and Prince Yadav shared the new ball and delivered tight spells upfront. Yadav provided the breakthrough by dismissing the dangerous Finn Allen, giving LSG an ideal start. In the middle overs of the powerplay, spinners Manimaran Siddharth and Digvesh Rathi maintained control, restricting KKR from scoring freely. For KKR, captain Ajinkya Rahane looked in good touch, scoring 23 runs off 13 balls. However, Angkrish Raghuvanshi struggled to find rhythm, managing 20 runs from 15 deliveries. KKR will aim to build a competitive total as they look to secure their first win of the season. Speaking at the toss, Rahane revealed that he would have preferred to bowl as well and confirmed a change in the playing XI. “We wanted to bowl. I was thinking about the previous game, which didn’t get completed, so you never know. Just one change — Sunil comes in place of Blessing, while Varun is still recovering from a hand injury,” Rahane said. Meanwhile, LSG captain Rishabh Pant will be looking to register back-to-back wins after leading his team to victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their previous match. Confirmed playing XI for both teams: Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(w), Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Navdeep Saini, Kartik Tyagi Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Manimaran Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav
09 April,2026 08:16 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentLucknow Super Giants skipper Rishabh Pant won the toss and elected to bowl first against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. KKR are yet to register a win this season, while Lucknow Super Giants come into the match on the back of a victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad. Speaking after the toss, Pant said he was happy to bowl first, especially with rain expected in the area. The previous match at Eden Gardens was abandoned due to rain. “I think we are looking to bowl first. We want to put the opposition under pressure. As I said before, we trust our bowlers to do a good job for us. The win definitely adds to the team’s atmosphere. We always talk about staying positive and maintaining intent. When you win, everything seems to come together, and we’re really happy about that. We’re going in with the same team — no changes for us. Our top order is strong, and we trust them to carry us through the innings,” Pant said. Meanwhile, KKR skipper Ajinkya Rahane said he would have also preferred to bowl first. He confirmed that Sunil Narine is fit again after missing the previous match due to injury. “We wanted to bowl first as well. The previous match didn’t get completed, so you never know how things might have turned out. Just one change for us — Sunil comes in place of Blessing. Varun is still recovering from a hand injury,” Rahane said. Confirmed playing XI for both teams: Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(w), Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Navdeep Saini, Kartik Tyagi Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Manimaran Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav
09 April,2026 07:15 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentThe Gujarat Titans narrowly edged past the Delhi Capitals by 1-run in an IPL classic in Delhi. Rashid Khan was the star bowler for GT as he took three crucial wickets in his quota of four overs. Speaking on Star Sports 'Amul Cricket Live', the former India spinner Piyush Chawla reflected on Rashid Khan's decisive spell that guided GT to their first win of the season. "We all know what Rashid Khan is capable of on his day; he can trouble any batting line-up. Gujarat Titans needed him to step up, especially while defending this total on a good batting wicket and a small ground, and he delivered. He was right on the money from the very first ball." Piyush Chawla said. Rashid was named Player of the Match for his bowling figures of 17/3. He took the wickets of Nitish Rana, Sameer Rizvi and Axar Patel at crucial stages of the match to put the visitors in a commanding position. "The way he dismissed Sameer Rizvi was particularly impressive. He bowled several leg-spinners earlier, and when Rizvi walked in, a batter with strong numbers against spin this season, he showed him the slip, making him expect a leg-break, but deceived him with the wrong' un. It was a beautiful delivery, right on target, beating the bat through the gap," Chawla added. Piyush Chawla happy to see KL Rahul back in form KL Rahul scored a magnificent 92, and David Miller scored a fighting 42 in DC's defeat against the GT. Piyush Chawla praised KL Rahul's impact on the game and admitted that his innings was crucial to get DC close to chasing the total. "At that stage, those runs were crucial, and KL Rahul ensured the required rate never went completely out of reach for Delhi Capitals. He started steadily, around 26 off his first 20 balls, but then accelerated well. Having played such an innings, he would probably be disappointed with himself because when you bat like that, you want to finish the game for your team. Unfortunately for him, that didn't happen." Chawla said, talking about KL Rahul's innings. (With ANI Input)
09 April,2026 06:01 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentThe Gujarat Titans defeated the Delhi Capitals by 1 run in a thrilling match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. The visitors were on the cusp of defeat but won the match with the last ball of the innings. Chasing 211 for the win, KL Rahul scored a masterful 92 to give Delhi a chance. After Rahul's dismissal, David Miller scored 41 runs off just 20 balls to almost guide the hosts to a victory. Delhi Capitals needed just 2 runs off 2 deliveries, but a dot ball followed by a run-out broke the DC hearts. After a heartbreaking loss, Axar Patel admitted that he is proud of his team, but it is a tough loss to take. "Yeah, obviously the way we are playing, I think both teams played a very good, I think, a very good cricket. And yeah, I think, this type of close game, you can, you know, point out anything. So I think, yes, we played very good cricket. As I said earlier, in a close chase, in a close game, you can point out a lot of things. But I think in the chase, I think we could have played smarter. The crucial time at which the wickets fell, I think, if that hadn't happened, we could have finished the chase earlier. (on KL Rahul) Yeah, obviously, he played a very good innings. And if you know, the way the power play was going, after that, he kept the momentum going. When the wickets were falling, he kept the momentum going from one side. He did not let the run-rate go down. So I think it was very good batting. I think we are playing good cricket, and yes, we will finish in the next match." Axar Patel said. Shubman Gill delighted to get the first win of the season. Winning captain Shubman Gill was thrilled to get the first win of the season. The Indian opener was the star with the bat and admitted that he was nervous going into the last over of the match. "Definitely, all three games that we've played, you know, have gone until the last over. But very pleased to get over the line in this one. (on what he felt when Miller didn't take the run off the 5th ball?) We have a chance to win. (chat before the last ball with Prasidh) No, we were just discussing whether to go for the yorker or to go for the slower one. But, you know, we decided that giving the wicket how it's playing, the slower one, if you bowl a good slower one, it'll be difficult to hit that for a boundary. (on the fielding) Yes, it did. Apart from, you know, the overthrows that I gave and the boundary that I gave. I think those 5-6 runs, obviously in fielding, make a difference, especially in a game like this, you see you're winning by one run. So every effort and every misfield or every good effort counts. Definitely very pleased, you know, 210. We always thought on this wicket, we are 10-15 runs above par. It won't be like even when we were batting in the death, it wasn't easy to hit the big boundaries, just hitting, the slowness of the wicket. And we thought if we bowl well, you know, we should be able to win this one. (on his batting) Yes, definitely. Now I just need to sleep and see how I wake up tomorrow." Gill said.
09 April,2026 04:43 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentThe Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) star all-rounder Romario Shepherd recalled his journey from playing cricket in Guyana to representing one of the biggest franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL). He revealed that back then, he, along with his friends, used to shape a wooden piece into a ball and use coconut branches as a willow. "I used to play cricket in a small opening in my yard. Sometimes we made the ball with wood or used coconut branches to make a bat. Whenever the ball hit your shin, there were no pads because we were barefoot, so you had to defend your foot," he said. A batsman now known for towering maximums was once a player trying to find gaps while batting. "In the first game I played, I scored 129 and batted through the 40 overs, with no sixes. At that time, I was not a big hitter. All I knew was to find the gaps," said the 31-year-old cricketer. Shepherd then said that he aspired to become like former West Indies cricketer Dwayne Bravo. "Whenever you listened to the radio, there was always one name you heard doing everything, batting, bowling and fielding, and that was Dwayne Bravo. I wanted to be like that guy," he said. His breakthrough in white-ball cricket came in 2018 during the Caribbean Premier League, where his performances quickly began drawing attention. "2018 is when people started taking my white-ball cricket seriously. I started bowling a lot of yorkers and hitting the ball, and commentators like Ian Bishop were saying this kid has something about him," he said. The burly all-rounder then recollected the moment when he smashed a maximum to his childhood hero, Bravo. "The first ball I faced was from Dwayne Bravo and I hit it for six ways back in the crowd. That was big for me because he was someone I looked up to," said Shepherd. In the IPL 2026, the Rajat Patidar-led RCB is placed in third position on the points table. So far, the side has secured victories in as many games, and has a net run rate (NRR) of +2.501 and four points. IPL 2026, Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Rajasthan Royals: Date and venue Patidar and Co. will now lock horns with Rajasthan Royals (RR) on April 10 at the Assam Cricket Association Stadium in Guwahati. (With ANI Inputs)
09 April,2026 03:32 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentTeam India is set to lock horns with Afghanistan in the one-off Test match, which will begin from June 6 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh. Afghanistan's star all-rounder Rashid Khan is likely to skip the Test match as he was advised by the doctors to stay away from red-ball cricket after a back surgery. While the likelihood of playing a Test match in India is attractive, the all-rounder has maintained his priority of remaining fit for the ODI World Cup 2027 in South Africa. Earlier, he underwent a lower-back surgery after the ODI World Cup 2023 and revealed that his doctors have cautioned him from featuring in the traditional format of the game. Despite that, he made his appearance in a Test match against Zimbabwe, in which he bowled 54 overs and picked up 11 wickets. "Very tough question. It's a little difficult in red ball, because that was the first thing which was told to me by the doctor, 'You have to stay away from red ball.' But I still played a Test against Zimbabwe," Rashid told reporters. "He (doctor) said 'if you don't want to play cricket, you keep playing the red ball format'," he added. The Nangarhar-born cricketer also stated that he won't be able to play cricket if he sustains any back injury in the Test match against Team India. "You're asking me very tough questions. I think I already played one before (in 2025), so I will just take it easy, get myself ready for the World Cup. Imagine something happens to my back in that Test match, I can't play 100 Test matches. If you're playing one Test in a year, I can't play for 100 years, so there is no target in Test cricket," he said. Rashid Khan provides an update on his participation in ODI matches for Afghanistan However, Rashid said that he will continue to make his appearance for Afghanistan in One-Day Internationals (ODIs) for a longer period of time. "ODIs, yes, I enjoy, and I'm in a good shape to play ODIs for a longer period of time for Afghanistan, but just to be careful with how many I play, and not to put too much load on myself, to be careful if I want to play for a longer period of time," said the 27-year-old cricketer. (With PTI Inputs)
09 April,2026 03:31 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentAhead of his side's massively anticipated derby against five-time champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) wicketkeeper-batter Heinrich Klaasen said that he is not worried about his poor record against Men in Yellow, and it's just that his risk-taking against their spinners has not paid off for him. CSK will take on SRH on April 18 as a part of the competition's 'Rivalry Week', which will kickstart from April 12 onwards. However, the former South African batter has failed to fire against CSK, scoring just 61 runs across five innings at an average of 15.25 and a best score of just 20. His strike rate has also been sluggish, 96.82 against CSK. At Hyderabad, where the first of their two meeting this season will be held, Klaasen has scored 10* in his one inning. While at CSK's iconic home venue of Chepauk, he has managed just 44 runs in three innings. Answering ANI's query at the 'JioStar Press Room' ahead of the 'Rivalry Week', Klaasen said that Chennai is not the easiest place to play cricket for batters. "Playing at Chennai is probably not the easiest place to play cricket, especially if you have, I call it normally the 'Jadeja wicket', where you can bowl at 100 kilometres an hour and the ball spin or just holds a little bit. Luckily, he is not there this season (traded to Rajasthan Royals), so it is a completely different team," he said. Klaasen said that for him, it is about hitting the ball a little longer and clearing the boundary. "It is also about giving myself enough of an opportunity to make a bigger impact. It is sometimes a team that presents a lot of spinners, especially in the conditions that they play in, you have to take that risk and it has not paid off yet. So I am not too worried about it. It is just about for me finding form. And when I do get form, it is just to cherish it and make sure that I keep holding on it," he added. Klaasen definitely has no reason to worry this season as he has started the campaign with 145 runs in the first three matches at an average of 48.33 and a strike rate of 147.95, including two fifties and a best score of 62. He is SRH's highest run-getter so far and overall third-highest. This story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed, agencies. Mid-day accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability, trustworthiness, reliability and data of the text. Mid-day management/mid-day.com reserves the sole right to alter, delete or remove (without notice) the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever
09 April,2026 01:22 PM IST | New Delhi | ANIIn the IPL 2026 match against Gujarat Titans (GT), Delhi Capitals (DC) suffered a loss by one wicket at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi. During the match, star batsman David Miller refused to take a single, which in turn cost DC the match. Later, needing two off two to reach 211, Miller refused a single off Prasidh Krishna on the penultimate ball. He missed the final delivery but ran for a single. However, Kuldeep Yadav, from the other end, was unable to beat Jos Buttler's direct throw after the two batters had crossed over. The former Team India cricketer Sunil Gavaskar defended Miller by saying that the left-handed batsman should not be blamed for his intent as he backed himself, believing that he could win the match for the Capitals. "David Miller was backing himself, he had been striking the ball well and believed he could finish it. You can't fault that intent. In the end, it also came down to execution, Prasidh Krishna bowled a superb slower bouncer at the right height, which made it difficult. These are very fine margins in pressure situations," he told JioStar. IPL 2026, Gujarat Titans vs Delhi Capitals: Match summary Batting first, the Titans posted a total of 210 runs for the loss of four wickets in 20 overs. Skipper Gill delivered a knock of 70 runs off 45 balls, including four boundaries and five maximums. Wicketkeeper-batsman Jos Buttler accumulated 52 runs in just 27 balls, with the help of three boundaries and five maximums. Later, facing 32 balls, Washington Sundar registered 55 runs, laced with six boundaries and two maximums. In the second essay of the game, with an attempt to chase the target, DC's Pathum Nissanka scored 41 runs in 24 balls, with the help of six boundaries and a maximum. Wicketkeeper-batsman KL Rahul played a stupendous knock of 92 runs. In his 52-ball knock, he smashed 11 boundaries and four maximums. David Miller smashed an unbeaten 41 runs, but fell short of taking his side home. GT's star spinner Rashid Khan returned with the figures of three wickets for 17 runs in four overs. The Titans will now travel to Lucknow to lock horns with Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Ekana Cricket Stadium B Ground on April 12. On the other hand, the Capitals will clash against Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on April 11 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. (With PTI Inputs)
09 April,2026 01:19 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondentADVERTISEMENT
