The hosts LSG have lost their inaugural match of the season against Rajasthan Royals where they fell 20 runs short of the target. However, captain KL Rahul and pinch-hitter Nicholas Pooran hit half-centuries. Rahul's fitness was an issue and he looked promising in the first match. He also took the gloves despite having Pooran and Quinton de Kock in the team.

LSG's top-order batters need to provide a good start. De Kock, Ayush Badoni and Devdutt Padikkal failed to impress while chasing a 194-run target against the Royal. Deepak Hooda displayed some aerial shots but could not continue that for long.

Punjab Kings have started their campaign with a win against Delhi Capitals but lost the last game by four wickets in a thrilling contest against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Their bowling and fielding were pretty average against RCB which resulted in a defeat by four wickets.

Kagiso Rabada and Harpreet Brar have bowled well so far and Shashank Singh has against RCB also attracted many eyes with his crucial cameo against RCB. Punjab Kings have not used Sikandar Raza and Rilee Rossouw yet and a few changes are expected in the final XI as they face LSG at their home venue.

LSG vs PBKS Full Squads:

Lucknow Super Giants: KL Rahul (c), Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Devdutt Padikkal, Ravi Bishnoi, Naveen-ul-Haq, Krunal Pandya, Yudhvir Singh, Prerak Mankad, Yash Thakur, Amit Mishra, Shamar Joseph, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, K. Gowtham, Shivam Mavi, Arshin Kulkarni, M. Siddharth, Ashton Turner, David Willey, Mohd. Arshad Khan

Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan (captain), Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Sikandar Raza, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis, Sam Curran, Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Shivam Singh, Harshal Patel, Chris Woakes, Ashutosh Sharma, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Shashank Singh, Tanay Thyagarajan, Prince Choudhary, Rilee Rossouw

As Lucknow Super Giants take on Punjab Kings in the group-stage fixture at Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow, three key battles are worth looking out for:

1. KL Rahul Vs Kagiso Rabada

KL Rahul made a fighting half-century against Rajasthan Royals and played his shots in all directions. He likes to take his time at the start and then play his shots. Kagiso Rabada comes to bowl in the powerplay and at the death overs. He has lethal yorkers and accurate bouncers in his arsenal. The battle of Rahul's batting and Rabada's bowling will be the most interesting in the initial overs.

2. Jonny Bairstow vs Naveen-Ul-Haq

Jonny Bairstow comes to open the batting for Punjab Kings and Naveen-Ul-Haq, who also bowls a few overs in the powerplay can prove to be dangerous for him. Bairstow, however, likes to charge against medium-pacers and can go berserk against him. But the Afghan pacer has good slower balls and his deliveries also have accuracy in line and lengths, which can work in his favour when he faces the English power-hitter.

3. Quinton de Kock vs Harpreet Brar

Quinton de Kock likes to start firing from the first over. He does not need to spend much time on the pitch, waiting for a bad delivery. Harpreet Brar, who bowled a brilliant spell against RCB, however, may possess some danger for him when the two face each other in Lucknow. De Kock likes to bat against spinners and a left-arm spinner may spin a web of traps for him. It will be interesting to see who comes on top on Saturday.