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NEW DELHI: Lucknow Super Giants captain Rishabh Pant apologised to the franchise’s fans after Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to field in Match 68 of IPL 2026 at the Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Saturday.Already eliminated from the playoff race, LSG are playing only for pride in their final league match of the season, while Punjab Kings need a win to keep their qualification hopes alive. Speaking at the toss, Pant said LSG too would have preferred to bowl first and predicted a high-scoring contest.“We would have bowled first as well. This wicket is good for cricket regardless of bowling or batting. This is one of the better batting wickets; it could be a high-scoring match. Two changes – Arjun and Arshin Kulkarni are in,” Pant said during the toss.Pant also apologised to the fans for the franchise’s disappointing campaign.“It’s been a tough season, but at the same time, there has been a lot of learning, both for the team and personally. I’d say sorry for the fans, they have come from all over UP. It’s been tough going for us, but we’ll give our 100% today,” the LSG skipper said.LSG have endured a poor IPL 2026 season. Despite boasting a star-studded squad, Pant’s side managed only four wins and suffered nine defeats in 13 matches.They were also the first team to be knocked out of the playoff race this season.This is the third consecutive year that the Lucknow franchise has failed to qualify for the IPL playoffs after finishing seventh in both IPL 2024 and IPL 2025 as well.Punjab Kings, meanwhile, opted to bowl first after winning the toss.“We will bowl first. Two changes – Marco and Vyshak are in. Feeling is exciting, I would say it’s a good match for us. We have never been in this situation before, and the boys are waiting to do their best,” Iyer said during the toss.Teams:Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh(w), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer(c), Suryansh Shedge, Shashank Singh, Azmatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.Punjab Kings (Impact Players): Harpreet Brar, Marcus Stoinis, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Praveen Dubey.Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Josh Inglis, Arshin Kulkarni, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Arjun Tendulkar, Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav, Mohsin Khan.Lucknow Super Giants (Impact Players): Shahbaz Ahmed, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Manimaran Siddharth, Himmat Singh, Akash Maharaj Singh.
