One side fighting for a playoff spot, the other long since out of it. CSK arrive at Ekana with a chance to leapfrog into the top four, while LSG can only play spoiler on a track that has produced wildly different scorelines this season.
The subplot is CSK's growing casualty list and whether their bowling holds up without their best allrounder.
CSK: red-hot form, but the injuries keep piling up
Stephen Fleming's side rolls in on a tear — four wins in five, including a 208-chase against this same LSG outfit five days ago. Jamie Overton was Player of the Match that night with three wickets.
Overton is now gone for the rest of IPL 2026 with a right thigh injury, per ESPNcricinfo. His 14 wickets at an economy of 8.89 and SR 158 with the bat made him the closest thing CSK had to a complete cricketer. Replacement Dian Forrester is unavailable for Friday.
That leaves CSK choosing between Spencer Johnson, yet to play this season, and Matt Henry, who has struggled. Khaleel Ahmed is also out for the year with a quad injury.
The batting carries them. Sanju Samson has 430 runs at SR 169.29 — his best IPL strike rate ever. Urvil Patel has locked down the No. 3 spot with knocks of 24(12), 17(9), and 65(23). His SR of 232 since 2024 is unmatched among Indian T20 batters with 500-plus runs.
MS Dhoni did not travel with the squad to Lucknow. A calf strain has kept him out of every game this season.
LSG: playing for pride, but Pant loves this matchup
Carl Crowe was honest about it — pride and individual performances are all that remain. LSG have lost four of their last five and sit tenth with three wins from eleven.
Rishabh Pant's captaincy win rate is just 30%, the lowest among IPL skippers with 10-plus games since 2025. He has crossed fifty only three times in 24 LSG innings.
But CSK seem to flip a switch in him — Pant averages 45.3 against them at SR 151. If a fixture brings out his best, this is it.
Mitchell Marsh smashed a century at this very ground in LSG's last home outing against RCB. Josh Inglis is one of only two batters striking at 200-plus in the powerplay in IPL since 2025 (min 100 balls). The pieces for a big total exist.
Mohsin Khan is reportedly injured and unlikely to feature, leaving LSG's pace attack thinner on a surface that has favoured the quicks.
Breakdown: pitch no. 4 is a coin flip
Two of the last games on this strip saw LSG bowled out for 141 and 119, with fast bowlers taking 23 of 30 wickets. The very next match here — LSG vs RCB — produced over 400 runs in 38 overs.
Venue averages this season sit at 175.4 in the first innings and 164.3 in the second, with chasing teams winning 53.8%. Toss winners field 77% of the time — dew matters in Lucknow.
The key matchup is Noor Ahmad against LSG's left-handers. He has dismissed Nicholas Pooran three times in four meetings for just 2 runs, and kept Markram and Pant below run-a-ball. Akeal Hosein offers the same threat in reverse — he has dismissed Marsh twice while conceding 61 off 52 in T20s.
Both attacks have specialists for the opposition's danger men. That points to a tighter contest than the bookmaker total suggests.
Prediction: CSK individual total over offers the edge
The match total line of 348.5 is awkward. Ekana has produced wild swings, and CSK without Overton may struggle to defend at the death, but the spin-heavy attack of Noor Ahmad and Hosein could equally choke LSG on a slowish deck.
The cleaner read is CSK's individual total at 176.5. Samson is having a career year, Urvil Patel is striking at 232, and Gaikwad averages 42.2 over his last five. LSG's bowling concedes 9.36 runs per over this season — one of the worst marks in the league. The last time these two met, CSK chased 204 in 19.2 overs.
Against a depleted LSG attack potentially missing Mohsin Khan, CSK clearing 176 looks the higher-probability outcome.
Match prediction: CSK Over 176.5 runs, odds 1.92
