LSG vs CSK Playing 11 and Toss News, IPL 2026: Lucknow opt to field, Spencer Johnson makes debut for Chennai

That’s it as far as our coverage of toss and team changes for the Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings match is concerned. You can, however, keep yourself updated on the match through the live scorecard above.

Rishabh Pant: The wicket is looking a little bit tacky, so just did not need to go out there and bat ourselves. As a team, we have a lot to achieve. We are a team, we run on trust, and that is something we are looking forward to. I think a lot of like Akash is playing today. I think he’s getting his first chance of the season. We are trying a few things for the next season for sure. And just looking to give our 200 per cent regardless of anything. There is no running away from the way we have played this season. But at the same time, there is a lot of positive what we can take because, we are a little frustrated as a team because we know we have it in the team. We can make it happen and sometimes things doesn’t work your way, but at the same time, no complaints from that side. We’ve got to still play good cricket and look to improve ourselves each and every day.

Ruturaj Gaikwad: It is a privilege to have (support), privilege to wear the yellow jersey. It’s a kind of venue where you have to bat well and bowl well. So I think, batting first, we still have to put up a good score and we have seen that it has been defended as well. So I think, yes, it might suit, look like a bit of a moisture to start with, but I think, if we bat well and score I think around 170-180, it will be a good total to defend. (Injuries) Honestly, it’s tough. Obviously, you have to keep changing a lot, once you find a momentum and once you find a squad, you want to keep going. But this is something which we cannot control and with that said, I think it gives opportunities to a lot of players who want to represent CSK and be part of the IPL. So, whatever replacements we have had, Urvil coming in and at some point of time, Mukesh coming in as well. So that has definitely helped them grow individually as well. And it gives us the confidence going ahead, we know that we have good backups in.

Lucknow Super Giants: Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(wk/c), Mukul Choudhary, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Shami, Mayank Yadav, Akash Maharaj Singh, Prince Yadav; Impact Subs: Josh Inglis, M Siddharth, Digvesh Rathi, Himmat Singh, Ayush Badoni

Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson(wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad(c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Spencer Johnson, Mukesh Choudhary; Impact Subs: Gurjapneet Singh, Akeal Hosein, Sarfaraz Khan, Matthew Short, Matt Henry

Pacer Akash Singh has been included in LSG’s playing XI for today’s game along with middle-order batters Abdul Samad and Mukul Choudhary.

Johnson comes in for Jamie Overton, who has been ruled out of the remainder of the season due to a thigh injury. CSK also bench left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein and bring another left-arm quick in Gurjapneet Singh into the XI.

LSG, who have already been eliminated from the playoffs race, make three changes to their lineup.

“Well, what I’m seeing really is that this pitch also is likely to be what we find earlier in the two matches, where there won’t be too many runs being scored because when you have a look at the surface, as you go, there’s no grass cover whatsoever, but there are patches over here which seem to be, maybe bowler’s footmarks and the rough created sometimes by even the batters running on it. And that is the reason why I have a feeling, when the ball pitches over there, it might keep low or it might behave awkwardly. There might be a little bit of turn because it looks like a very dry surface. So it looks like, when I bent down and I felt the pitch, it looked like a dry surface. There might be just a little bit of grip, particularly for the wrist spinner. So, I think both the batting teams will have to bat really extraordinarily well to get to maybe 200 plus. And if they do that, the whole crowd will be in for a treat. But I doubt it.”

While chasing has largely been the preferred option for captains this season, teams batting first have won two and lost as many, it will be a 50-50 call for the captain winning the toss today.

Kuldip Yadav joins the five-time champions as Khaleel’s replacement for Rs 30 lakh, having previously played for Rajasthan Royals in the 2021 and 2023 seasons.

The upcoming match between Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings will be played on the same wicket where the former had been bowled out for 141 and 119 by Delhi Capitals and Rajasthan Royals earlier this season. Expect another low-scoring contest today, one where pacers are likely to play an important role.

While CSK have signed Dian Forrester as Jamie Overton’s replacement, the South African all-rounder won’t be available for selection right away. The Super Kings thus will be picking either Matt Henry or Spencer Johnson, neither of whom is an exact like-for-like replacement.

Overton has since been replaced by South African all-rounder Dian Forrester, whom the Super Kings have signed for Rs 75 lakh. Forrester, however, will not be available for Friday’s fixture in Lucknow.

CSK predicted playing XI: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Matt Short, Shivam Dube, Akeal Hosein, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Veer (IP)

LSG predicted playing XI: Mitchell Marsh, Josh Inglis, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (c) (wk), Aiden Markram, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav, Avesh Khan (IP)

Here are the full squads of Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings: 

Lucknow Super Giants: Josh Inglis, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (wk/c), Aiden Markram, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Shahbaz Ahmed, Himmat Singh, Mohammed Shami, Avesh Khan, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav, Mukul Choudhary, Abdul Samad, Manimaran Siddharth, Mayank Yadav, George Linde, Anrich Nortje, Matthew Breetzke, Mohsin Khan, Arjun Tendulkar, Ayush Badoni, Akash Maharaj Singh, Arshin Kulkarni, Naman Tiwari.

Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (c), Urvil Patel, Kartik Sharma, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Prashant Veer, Akeal Hosein, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Mukesh Choudhary, Gurjapneet Singh, Matthew Short, Sarfaraz Khan, Akash Madhwal, Dian Forrester, MS Dhoni, Matt Henry, Shreyas Gopal, Rahul Chahar, Spencer Johnson, Aman Khan, Zakary Foulkes, Macneil Noronha.

The Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings match will be broadcasted live on the Star Sports Network. The live streaming will be made available on the Jiohotstar app and website with an active subscription.

The Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings match will start at 07:30 PM IST. The toss will take place half an hour before the match (07:00 PM IST).

The Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings match will take place at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana International Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh.

The Lucknow Super Giants vs Chennai Super Kings match will take place soon, with toss happening before the action. Stay tuned for all the live updates.