Will O'Rourke makes IPL debut as SRH bowl first

Lucknow Super Giants handed a debut to Will O'Rourke as they take on Sunrisers Hyderabad in Match 61 of IPL 2025

Lucknow Super Giants introduced young batter Will O’Rourke for his Indian Premier League debut as they took on Sunrisers Hyderabad in a crucial encounter at Bharat Ratna Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Stadium on Monday.

The two teams met for the second time this season after their first clash in Hyderabad earlier this month, which saw SRH emerge victorious by 34 runs.

Both teams arrived at the encounter with the hopes of securing a crucial win and advancing further in the tournament. LSG, in particular, were looking to make amends after a disappointing loss to Gujarat Titans in their previous game.

The stage was set for an exciting contest as both sides announced their playing XIs.

For LSG, the inclusion of O’Rourke was the main talking point. The 23-year-one batter had a impressive outing in the Caribbean Premier League with St Lucia Kings.

Meanwhile, SRH had to make two changes to their side due to injuries and personal commitments. Travis Head remained in his hotel room while Jaydev Unadkat had to attend to a family emergency.

Their places went to young opener Atharva Taide and Harsh Dubey, who had a good outing with Delhi Capitals last season.

SRH also announced Eshan Malinga as their Impact Player.

Sunrisers Hyderabad : Ishan Kishan (wk), Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Reddy, Heinrich Klassen, Aniket Verma, Kamindu Mendis, Pat Cummins (capt), Harshal Patel, Harsh Dubey, Zeeshan Ansari, Eshan Malinga

Impact Player Subs : Mohammad Shami, Atharva Taide, Sachin Baby, Abhinav Manohar, Simarjeet Singh

Lucknow Super Giants : Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Poornan, Rishabh Pant (capt, wk), Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Akash Deep, Ravi Bishnoi, Digvesh Rathi, Avesh Khan, Will O’Rourke

Impact Player Subs : Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Manimaran Siddharth, Shardul Thakur, David Miller

The pitch report suggested a batting-friendly surface with a slight sheen early on that could favor the new ball.

Experts Pommie Mbangwa and Aaron Finch predicted a high-scoring affair under lights, with Finch noting the advantage for the team batting second.

“It is a fantastic setting here in Lucknow with a great crowd and both teams will be looking to put on a good show after the last game was a bit of a damp squib,” said Mbangwa.

“I think we will see a high-scoring game here. Both teams like to set a good total and then restrict the other team. But I think the team that chases here will have a slight advantage.”

“I agree with that. I think the pitch will get better for batting as the game goes on and it will be interesting to see how the Impact Player selections turn out,” said Finch.

“But I am going with SRH to win this one by a close margin.”