Lucknow Super Giants suffered a crushing defeat against Pat Cummins and Co. on Wednesday, which put them in a tricky spot in the playoffs race. It was a dismal performance from LSG bowlers and their top-order in batting as Sunrisers Hyderabad crushed them at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad.

LSG skipper KL Rahul won the toss and elected to bat first, but the decision backfired for them as they lost Quinton de Kock and Marcus Stoinis early in the powerplay, which put pressure on Rahul, and he went into his shell once again. The LSG captain failed to rise under the pressure and scored 29 runs off 33 balls. He looked sluggish throughout the innings as LSG scored just one boundary in the powerplay and hit 27 runs. Meanwhile, Ayush Badoni (55*) and Nicholas Pooran (48*) helped them post a fighting total of 165/4 on the scoreboard.

However, SRH openers Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma made a mockery of it and chased it down in just 9.4 overs. Head smashed 89*, and fellow left-hander Abhishek, who hit 75*, tore into the opposition attack to romp home with 10.2 overs to spare at their home in Uppal.

After the match, LSG owner Sanjeev Goenka was seen having an animated chat with skipper Rahul on the ground. It didn't look a pleasant sight as Goenka looked miffed with the team's performances, and many suggested he should have waited to get to the dressing room or a meeting room to have that conversation instead of doing it in a public place.

‘Lost for words’

Head and Abhishek showed no mercy and smashed the LSG bowlers all around the park to chase down the 166-run target in just 9.4 overs to script several records as LSG players had an embarrassing night.

"I'm lost for words. We've watched that batting on TV but that was unreal," Lucknow skipper KL Rahul said of the bludgeoning by the Hyderabad openers.

"Everything was hitting the middle of the bat, kudos to their skill, they've worked very hard on their six-hitting."

However, it will be crucial for LSG to get over the humiliating defeat quickly as they are still in the playoffs race and have to win their remaining two matches to make a case for themselves.

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