The First Super Over of the IPL 2026 was played out between KKR ( Kolkata Knight Riders) and LSG ( Lucknow Super Giants) last night, with KKR emerging as the winners, dumping LSG in a tense but entertaining encounter at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium in Lucknow.
With just 2 to get in the Super Over, Rinku Singh struck a lovely square cut to the boundary and secured a famous win for the Knight Riders.
Today’s post on the IPL 2026 is my first of the season. The IPL this year has been just about batters mauling the bowlers with utter disdain. Placid wickets, short boundaries, big bats, pumped-up muscles, and the bowlers getting blown away to smithereens. It felt several times as if I were watching a video game rather than live cricket. It wasn’t cricket either, I felt.
With such disparities between bat and ball, the poor bowler appeared nothing more than an entertainment tool, with his craft, confidence and self-respect shattered by the big batters. People may call it skill, but the playing field, many will agree, is heavily skewed in favour of the batter. It is not fair.
There is a ray of hope, however, and the match yesterday at Lucknow, which favoured the bat and the ball in equal measure, was pure, gritty cricket and entertainment. And Rinku Singh won it for KKR singlehandedly.
After Mohsin Khan with his brilliant length and change of pace had taken a fifer for LSG, KKR were in dire straits, but Rinku, shepherded his team to a fighting total in an amazing display of temperament, composure, patience and of course some incredible batting skills.
Rinku took the game deep as he waited and waited to strike LSG. In the last over bowled by Digvesh Rathi, Rinku clubbed him for 4 sixes and got his team to 155, which was nothing short of a good fighting total. More importantly, he had turned the momentum of the game in KKR’s favour, and with a decent bowling line-up, LSG had a task at hand.
KKR fielded brilliantly, yet again led by Rinku, who took 5 catches, ably supported in the outfield by Rovman Powell. And of course, all the KKR bowlers stuck to plan and reaped rewards.
LSG’s batting woes resurfaced for the umpteenth time as Mitch Marsh, Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran failed yet again. Captain Rishabh Pant tried hard, but perished when he was needed most, and with a hopelessly non-existent middle order, LSG were pushed to the ropes.
The brave Shami, who has been superb with the ball, struck a floundering Kartik Tyagi for a six to push the match into the Super Over and provide another chance for LSG to win their first match on home ground this season.
It was not to be, as LSG sent in Nicholas Pooran and Markram to face the wily Sunil Narine. Pooran perished on the first ball, while Markram was superbly caught by Powell-Rinku combine, and KKR were left with just 2 to score for a win.
Rinku Singh took just a ball to complete the formalities as LSG lost another game ( which they should have won) at home. I hope Mr Goenka doesn’t shift LSG’s home ground from Lucknow to Pune. That will hurt me for sure.
It is difficult to find words for Rinku Singh, but more than his ability as a cricketer, I have great admiration for his humility and earthiness. He is akin to a humble crusader fighting every day to stay relevant in this tough cricketing set-up. No wonder he is such a massive inspiration.
Keep going, Rinku.
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