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LSG team in IPL 2026 (Source: AFP)
Kolkata Knight Riders will take on Lucknow Super Giants in Match 15 of the IPL 2026 on Thursday, April 9. The match will begin at 7:30 PM IST and will be played at Eden Gardens.
This match brings an interesting contest, with one team under pressure and the other carrying momentum. The team that performs better in the first six overs could have a big advantage.
KKR vs LSG Preview
Kolkata Knight Riders have not had a great start to the season. Their previous match against the Punjab Kings was washed out due to rain. Before that, they lost two matches in a row, first to the Mumbai Indians and then to Sunrisers Hyderabad.
At present, KKR are placed eighth on the points table and will be eager to get back to winning ways.
On the other hand, Lucknow Super Giants are coming into this match with confidence. They won their last game while chasing, thanks to a strong performance from Rishabh Pant, who scored 68 runs. LSG currently sit in sixth place, with one win and one loss from their two matches.
With excitement high for this KKR vs LSG match, in this article, let’s take a look at the predicted playing XI of LSG against KKR in IPL 2026.
LSG Playing XI vs KKR- Match 15, IPL 2026
Top-order: Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (c) (wk), Aiden Markram
It is important to mention that LSG will continue with the same openers in the LSG playing XI vs KKR. The Lucknow-based franchise will rely on the overseas duo of Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram.
In the last match against Sunrisers Hyderabad, Aiden Markram gave LSG the much-needed start and scored 45 runs off 27 balls. In LSG's upcoming match against KKR, the team will want a better performance from Mitchell Marsh, who scored 14 runs off 12 balls against SRH.
The LSG captain, Rishabh Pant, will likely bat at no.3 and will want to continue his good form from the last game. In SRH vs LSG, Pant started the innings slow and took his time to settle down, but after that, he played good cricketing shots and made 68 runs off 50 balls at a strike-rate of 136.00.
Middle-order and All-rounders: Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary
Now, with LSG's middle order in the last match against SRH, Ayush Badoni came in as an impact player at no 4, followed by Nicholas Pooran at 5.
Nicholas Pooran plays spin well and can manage the middle order when the spinners take the charge, so he was shifted down the LSG playing XI vs KKR, but in this match vs KKR, it is likely he will come in at no.4, followed by Ayush Badoni.
Then Abdul Samad, who has shown decent form in the IPL 2026 so far, will likely bat at no. 6. In the two innings so far, the 24-year-old player has made 52 runs at an average of 26.00 and a strike-rate of 140.54.
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At 7, the 21-year-old Mukul Choudhary will play for LSG. The star player is expected to add much-needed depth in the batting and can add those quick-fire runs down the order.
Bowlers: Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Manimaran Siddharth
It is important to note that the fact cannot be denied that LSG’s bowling department has performed better in comparison to the batting department. LSG’s bowling department will be led by the experienced pacer Mohammed Shami. In the IPL 2026 so far, the star bowler has played 2 innings and bagged three wickets at an economy of 4.63.
For LSG’s playing XI vs KKR, in the bowling department, Shami will be supported by Prince Yadav and Avesh Khan. There is a good chance that Anrich Nortje will also miss out on his place in the LSG playing XI vs KKR match as well.
Manimaran Siddharth will be the solo frontline spinner for LSG. It is vital to note here that the left-arm spinner will make a place in the LSG playing XI vs KKR before Digvesh Rathi. Given that KKR has a right-hand batter-heavy lineup, LSG might prefer him over Digvesh Rathi.
LSG Playing XI vs KKR: Mitch Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Mukul Choudhary, Abdul Samad, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Manimaran Siddharth.
LSG vs KKR Impact Players List
LSG Impact Players List: Mohsin Khan, Digvesh Rathi, Shahbaz Ahmed, Himmat Singh, Akshat Raghuvanshi.
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