After a confidence-boosting win against the Chennai Super Kings on Monday, the Punjab Kings will look to soar higher in their next outing, against the Lucknow Super Giants at Pune’s Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium.

The Friday night encounter will see sixth placed PBKS with eight points in their kitty, take on fourth placed LSG, who have earned 10 points so far in the Tata Indian Premier League.

Ahead of the match, below are some noteworthy points.

So far in the Tata IPL for PBKS and LSG

The Punjab Kings have had an equal share of losses and wins in the Tata IPL so far. The team has eight points in eight matches, winning four games. Their results are - W, L, W, L, W, L, L, W

After a three-match winning streak in the middle, the Lucknow Super Giants have won alternative games. While they have more wins than PBKS, momentum is something both teams are after. Their results so far are - L, W, W, W, L, W, L, W

Manish Pandey vs Kagiso Rabada

Manish Pandey and Kagiso Rabada have an interesting history against each other. Pandey has not really gotten the upper hand against the South African, scoring 14 runs in 16 deliveries of his. Rabada, on the other hand, has accounted for Pandey’s wicket twice. He will look to continue his hold over Pandey, who will, in turn, look to reverse the stats.

Playing at Pune

The Punjab Kings have played at Pune once before with a favourable result for them. They posted a 12-run win against the Mumbai Indians here with captain Mayank Agarwal and Shikhar Dhawan scoring fifties and a four-wicket haul from Odean Smith.

The Lucknow Super Giants will be stepping onto the Pune pitch for the first time and will have some homework to do regarding understanding the pitch. The glowing form of KL Rahul and Dushmantha Chameera will give them confidence heading into the match.

Studying the Pune pitch

The MCA stadium at Pune has a pitch that supports the pacers and batters well. However, as the game progresses, it can also give ample support to spinners. The average first and second innings scores here are 153 and 128 respectively for T20s. The last two games played here showed a total of 144 being defended as well as a 170-run target being chased.

What a win here means for the teams

For the Lucknow Super Giants, a win could mean rising up to the second spot on the Tata IPL points table. For the Punjab Kings, it means an entry into the top four while giving them more chances to make it to the playoffs.

So cancel your Friday night plans, there are big things at stake with this Pune encounter.