After a superb performance against the Delhi Capitals, Mark Wood praises Morne Morkel, saying, “He has been incredibly excellent with me.”

For Lucknow Super Giants, the 16th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has gotten off to a fantastic start. The KL Rahul-led team’s opening game of the competition was against Delhi Capitals. As they did last year, Lucknow began the IPL 2023 with a convincing victory over David Warner’s Delhi.

Kyle Mayers and Nicholas Pooran played exceptionally well, leading Lucknow to score 193 runs. England pacer Mark Wood had a strong stint in the second innings, which helped Lucknow secure the victory. Wood got a wicket and allowed just 14 runs as his team defeated their opponent by 50 runs to win their first game of the year.

Speaking about his performance, Wood praised bowling coach Morne Morkel and captain KL Rahul, saying that they were crucial to his comeback.

After being named Player of the Match, Wood said, “KL (Rahul) wanted to keep things easy for me, and the planning with Morne helped me. He has been extremely nice with me, just try to do similar with what I do for England.”

You could see the dew on the grass, and it affected me. I fall even at the best of times. I’m just pleased that I managed to get some rhythm in and take some wickets. “Last time I was here, I played for CSK, and it didn’t go quite well. So I wanted to try to make an impact this time, and I’m delighted that it’s gone well today,” he said.

Today was Woody’s day, KL Rahul
KL Rahul, the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants, too came up to congratulate Mark Wood after his flawless performance in the first game.

Rahul said, “When someone is doing well and has those kinds of performances, it has a significant impact on the team and the outcome of the game. It was Woody’s day today. It’s always a fantasy for a fast bowler.

Currently in Chennai, Lucknow will face the Chennai Super Kings on April 3 in that team’s opening IPL 2023 home game.