IPL 2025: Why is Shardul Thakur not playing in GT vs LSG Match 64?

Shardul Thakur has not been picked to the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) squad that will meet the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday, May 22 for IPL 2025 Match No. 64.

Lucknow has already been eliminated from the playoff competition, and they are playing for dignity. Meanwhile, the Gujarat Titans have guaranteed their place in the tournament’s next phase and will want for a win to increase their chances of placing in the top two.

Toss Update

GT’s skipper Shubman Gill won the toss and elected to field first. He said that it will be a good thing for his side to have a target in front of them when they come out to bat in the second innings. The Punjab-born also emphasised building momentum heading into the Qualifiers. Meanwhile, LSG skipper Rishabh Pant said that he would also have bowled first had he won the toss. The wicketkeeper-batter said that his team will look to try out different options, looking to prepare for next season.

LSG bring in Shahbaz Ahmed, Himmat Singh, GT go unchanged

Shahbaz Ahmed and Himmat Singh have come back into the LSG side in place of Shardul Thakur and Digvesh Rathi. Ravi Bishnoi has been named among the Impact Subs. Rathi has suffered a one-match ban after his ‘notebook’ send-off in the previous game against Sunrisers Hyderabad. On the other hand, Thakur’s exclusion wasn’t mentioned at the toss by Pant. Meanwhile, GT are going in unchanged for this clash.

What did the captains say?

Shubman Gill, GT skipper, said 

We’ll bowl first, looks like a good wicket. Will be good to have a target on the board. We want momentum heading into the qualifiers, these two games are going to be equally important. (On partnership with Sai Sudharsan) The way we compliment each other is great, we don’t have conversations on who will take down the bowlers. We just play with a positive intent and stay in the moment. No changes.

Rishabh Pant, LSG skipper, said

Playing 11s

Lucknow Super Giants: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (WK & C), Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, William O’Rourke.

Impact Substitutes: Akash Maharaj Singh, Manimaran Siddharth, Ravi Bishnoi, David Miller, Arshin Kulkarni

Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (C), Jos Buttler (WK), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.

Impact Substitutes: Sai Sudharsan, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Washington Sundar, Dasun Shanaka