Varun Aaron says Eshan Malinga’s second spell against LSG was “critical” in lowering the first innings score in the 2025 Indian Premier League.

Varun Aaron believed that the main cause of the hosts being “at least 20-30 runs short” was Malinga’s three overs in which he dismissed Ayush Badoni and Rishabh Pant while giving up just 16 runs.

Eshan Malinga’s bowling effort in Match 61 of the current Indian Premier League between the Lucknow Super Giants and Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Ekana International Cricket Stadium was praised by former Indian batsman Varun Aaron. After giving up 12 runs in his opening over, Eshan finished with statistics of 2/28 in his allotted four overs.

“Pant’s wicket was a great catch to start with. He was confident since he had already taken a sharp one at short third man. Malinga made no mistake, and Pant didn’t connect well. Then he also got Badoni, who ought to have persisted and played the game thoroughly. However, he mistimed it and pulled the trigger too soon. That spell was crucial. In the absence of those two wickets, Lucknow would have easily scored between 220 and 230. They ultimately fell short by at least 20 to 30 runs,” he continued.

In addition to recording his best numbers in the Maarquee tournament thus far, the Sri Lankan pacer, who was playing in only his fifth IPL match, was the most economical bowler on both sides. Yesterday, Eshan bowled ten dot balls in total. For INR 1.20 crore, the Pat Cummins-led team purchased him. He has never played in the IPL before.

Speaking of the match, SRH prevailed with ten deliveries remaining and six wickets. Once LSG was limited to 205/7, SRH got right into their pursuit. Abhishek Sharma amassed a scorching 20-ball 59 to lead the Orange Army in scoring. To fully utilise Abhishek’s foundation, Heinrich Klaasen (47 off 28) and Kamindu Mendis (32 off 21) put on a 55-run partnership for the fourth wicket.

For his knock, Abhishek received the Player of the Match award. The runners-up from the previous season have had a campaign to forget, but SRH recorded their fourth victory of the competition. They play the Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their final two league games.