Australia all-rounder Mitchell Marsh has joined an elite club with yet another fifty for Lucknow Super Giants during their IPL 2025 match against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens.
Marsh continued his rich vein of form, bringing up his fourth fifty in five matches this year. To put things into perspective, he entered the season with only three fifties across eight different editions. Batting first, Marsh and Aiden Markram forged a 99-run opening stand, the highest of the season. Marsh dominated the partnership, hammering 46 off just three overs, while Markram contributed with 13 before perishing for 47 off 28.
Marsh scored 81 off 48 balls, studded with five sixes and six fours. In the process, he became only fourth player in the tournament's history to hit four fifties on the trot. Only Virat Kohli, David Warner and Chris Gayle have achieved the feat previously. Both Kohli and Warner reached the landmark in 2016, while captaining runners-up Royal Challengers Bengaluru and champions Sunrisers Hyderabad, respectively. Meanwhile, Gayle's feat came in 2018 for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) after switching allegiance from RCB.
In 2016, Kohli’s tally of 973 runs at an average of 81.08 and a strike-rate of 152.03 still remains the record for any season. Warner wasn’t too far behind with 848 runs at 60.57 and 151.42, the fourth-highest in a season.
Also read: Top five knocks that have defined Virat Kohli’s IPL career
5 games. 4 fifties. 180 SR. Mitch Marsh, ladies and gentlemen ✨ pic.twitter.com/z1e0yf4vmr
— Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) April 8, 2025
Marsh started the season with a 36-ball 72 in Visakhapatnam against Delhi Capitals and followed it up with a 52 off 31 against Sunrisers Hyderabad. There was a slight dip when he fell for a first-ball duck against Punjab Kings, but again bounced back with 60 off 31 and reached his half-century off 36 balls against KKR.
Apart from Marsh, Nicholas Pooran’s explosive hitting lifted Lucknow Super Giants to 238 – their second-highest total in Indian Premier League history. Pooran struck eight sixes and seven fours, including 24 runs off Andre Russell in the 18th over, the most expensive of the innings.
Chasing the daunting total, the home team raced to 90 for one in the powerplay. LSG held their nerves to win by just four runs, their third victory of the season in five matches.
Most fifties in first five innings of an IPL season
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