After his team’s thrilling five-run win over Mumbai Indians (MI), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper Krunal Pandya revealed that he battled cramps during the match at Ekana Cricket Stadium on Tuesday (May 16).

During the 16th over of LSG’s innings, Krunal walked off the field when he was batting on 49 from 42 balls. Nicholas Pooran arrived in the middle with four overs left, prompting former and current cricketers to speculate whether it was a tactical call from LSG to retire Krunal out.

The LSG captain came into bowl the first over of their defence but felt pain because of the cramps as he went off the field again. However, Krunal returned to the field to complete his quota of 4 overs.

"I was having cramps, I pulled a muscle. I have always been a team player, anything for the team, so happy with the result," Krunal said at the post-match presentation ceremony.

Defending the total of 177, LSG restricted MI to 172/5 despite the 90-run opening partnership between Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan.

Leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi starred with the ball, returning with the figures of 2/26 in his four-over spell. On the other hand, left-arm pacer Mohsin Khan (1/26) conceded only 5 runs while defending 11 in the final over against hard hitters like Tim David and Cameron Green.

Krunal Pandya heaped praise on Mohsin, saying that the latter has a big heart and is willing to do anything to help the team find success.

“Mohsin has a big heart. He had a surgery and playing IPL after such a thing, then sky is the limit. It has not been easy for us, really happy to end on a good note here. Good to give them a win in this last game at this venue,” he added.

With this victory, LSG leapfrogged MI into the third spot in the 10-team standings. They will need to win their last league match against KKR on Saturday (May 20) to assure a spot in the IPL 2023 playoffs.