3 player battles to watch out for in LSG vs RCB, Match 43 of IPL 2023 

The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will face the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) at the Ekana Stadium on Monday, May 1.

Only two points separate the sides in the IPL 2023 points table as their campaigns are set for a testing period. RCB are scheduled to play five consecutive away matches, which could very well define their season. LSG, on the other hand, got their campaign back on track with a thumping win over the Punjab Kings (PBKS) away from home.

The two sides played out a last-ball thriller in the reverse fixture at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium earlier this season. LSG emerged as the winners in that contest to gain two crucial points.

RCB might have the services of Josh Hazlewood for the upcoming crucial encounter, which proves to be a huge boost. The Australian pacer did not play the first half of the IPL 2023 campaign due to an injury.

LSG, meanwhile, are still stepping out onto the field without Quinton de Kock, with Kyle Mayers doing a splendid job at the top of the order with his explosive batting. The form of Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran down the order has also proved to be a huge positive for the KL Rahul-led side heading into the second half of the tournament.

On that note, here are three player battles to watch out for in the upcoming encounter between LSG and RCB in IPL 2023.

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#1 Faf du Plessis vs Krunal Pandya

Spin is expected to play a huge role in the proceedings in Lucknow's black soil wickets. LSG will look to chokehold the explosive RCB batting unit with spin bowling across all phases of the game and it is bound to be a challenge Faf du Plessis, who has played well against spin in general, albeit losing his wicket to it at times.

Among the leading run scorers in the tournament, du Plessis has played a big role in RCB getting off to good starts and building a platform.

Krunal Pandya, on the other hand, has done a commendable job with the ball in IPL 2023 so far. He took the wicket of key Gujarat Titans (GT) batter Shubman Gill for a duck while bowling in the powerplay in LSG's last home contest. Something similar might be on the cards here as well, given that du Plessis was dismissed by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) spinner Suyash Sharma in the powerplay in RCB's last outing.

The two key players have come across each other in five innings, where du Plessis has scored 61 runs off 44 deliveries at a strike rate of 138, while the all-rounder has dismissed the South African batter once.

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#2 Glenn Maxwell vs Ravi Bishnoi

Glenn Maxwell's love-hate relationship with spin has been well documented over the years. While he largely dominated spinners at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, it could prove to be a different proposition on the Lucknow surface, with the stadium also sporting larger boundaries.

Ravi Bishnoi started the tournament on a bright note but has faded away a little of late. He has taken only four wickets off the last five matches and his economy rate across the last two matches exceeds 10.

Maxwell has dominated his encounters against the leg-spinner so far. The Australian has scored 36 runs off the 17 deliveries at a strike rate of 211.76 while Bishnoi has not been able to dismiss him across three overall innings.

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#3 Marcus Stoinis vs Wanindu Hasaranga

The Australian all-rounder has been a force to be reckoned with as he is enjoying one of his most prolific IPL seasons so far. A mainstay in the middle order, Marcus Stoinis took the game away from RCB during their last encounter.

Wanindu Hasaranga, after missing the initial set of matches due to national duty, looks finally settled after a tough introduction to the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. The predicted black soil wicket in Lucknow is the ideal surface for the mystery spinner to showcase his craft.

Stoinis has had the upper hand against the Sri Lankan spinner in their six T20 meetings so far. The Australian has scored 47 runs off 20 deliveries at a strike rate of 235, while Hasaranga has claimed Stoinis' wicket on one occasion.

Who will win the upcoming encounter between LSG and RCB? Let us know what you think.