Marcus Stoinis has provided a crucial match-winning contribution with bat and ball to become the third Australian this season to win an IPL player of the match award.
The Australian allrounder's late innings knock of 21 and two vital wickets were key to Lucknow Super Giants' 10-run victory over the league-leading Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Wednesday.
He followed Punjab Kings' Nathan Ellis and Mumbai Indians' Cameron Green as the Aussies who have won player of the match gongs in the 2023 campaign.
Bowling for the first time in the league this season, Stoinis grabbed the key wickets of well-set openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal and England white-ball skipper Jos Buttler, just when they looked set to spearhead a straightforward run chase.
Earlier, Stoinis and Trinidadian keeper Nicholas Pooran had brought some late impetus to Lucknow's faltering innings, putting on 45 for the fifth wicket in their total of 7-154.
Stoinis's 21, off 16 balls, was far from his destructive best but on a slow, tricky pitch, his two-boundary knock and Pooran's 29 off 20 were crucial to the eventual outcome.
"When we were batting, it was a tough wicket so the message was 'don't try and set you standards too high, don't try to score a fifty off 20 balls'," said Stoinis.
"It was about understanding that we needed to put on a good total."
Though the Royals' openers looked to be guiding the home side to victory in the chase, having reached 87 without loss off 69 balls, Stoinis got Jaiswal snapped up by Avesh Khan at short third man for 44.
Then he grabbed the most prized wicket in the IPL as a delivery that seemed to get stuck a little in the surface ended with Buttler hoiking straight to Ravi Bishnoi at deep midwicket.
Stoinis, who ended with 2-28 off his four overs, did come in for some punishment late on but impact player Devdutt Padikkal (26) and Riyan Parag (15 not out) couldn't accelerate quite enough as the home side ended on 6-144.
"It was nice to get involved with the ball," said Stoinis.
"They weren't exact plans to get Jos and others out. It was just 'use the wicket and use my smarts as a bowler'."
Asked if he hoped to get more overs with the ball from now on, the Australian shrugged with a smile: "You will have to ask the skipper (KL Rahul) but I am good fitness-wise."
Lucknow's win now puts them on to eight points, only bettered by Rajasthan's superior run rate.
