ByAnupam Pandey, SportsCafe Editor
As we move forward to April 4, the cricket fans can celebrate the birthday of England’s former fast bowler Steven Finn, who was born in 1989. In 2025, the Lucknow Super Giants defeated the Mumbai Indians by 12 runs. In 2024, the Punjab Kings defeated the Gujarat Titans by 3 wickets in a big run chase. In 2005, Sri Lanka’s fast bowler Nuwan Kulasekara made his Test debut and went on to play 21 matches for the team. In 2023, the Gujarat Titans defeated the Delhi Capitals by 6 wickets.
Being a fast bowler from England and 6ft 7in height, Steven Finn has been the player who has represented England in 126 matches across formats and was born on 4th April, 1989. Starting with Test cricket, he played in 36 matches and picked 125 wickets at an average of 30.40, including 5 5-wicket hauls.
(Steven Finn was born on 4th April, 1989)
In ODI Cricket, he picked up 102 wickets in the 69 matches played while averaging 29.37 with the ball and holding an economy rate of 5.06. He also has 2 5-wicket-hauls and 4 4-wicket-hauls to his name in this format. T20I Cricket hasn’t seen much of him, and in the 21 matches played for the England team, he has got 27 wickets at an average of 21.59 and an economy rate of 7.28.
The bowler from India who proved to be a death specialist in the IPL, T Natarajan, was born on 4th April, 1991 in Salem. Being a left-arm pacer, T Natarajan has off-cutters and other deliveries, which makes it hard for the batsmen to pick him. Talking about the Test format, he played against Australia at Brisbane in 2021 and picked 3 wickets.
(T Natarajan was born on 4th April, 1991)
In the ODI Format, he was picked for 2 matches, and he claimed 3 wickets at an average of 47.66 and an economy rate of 7.15. Coming to the T20I format, he has played just 4 matches for the Indian team and has picked 7 wickets at an average of 17.42 and an economy rate of 7.62. In the IPL, he has played for Punjab Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and Delhi Capitals. In the 64 matches, he has got 70 wickets at an average of 29.24.
Seeing the contest at Lucknow, Lucknow Super Giants secured a solid 12-run win over Mumbai Indians in a high-scoring clash. Batting first, LSG posted 203 for 8 in 20 overs, thanks to strong contributions from Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram. Marsh played a quick knock of 60 runs off 31 balls with 9 fours and 2 sixes, while Markram added 53 off 38 balls.
(Lucknow Super Giants defeated Mumbai Indians by 12 runs)
Ayush Badoni chipped in with 30, and David Miller’s 27 helped LSG cross the 200 mark. Hardik Pandya was the standout bowler for MI, picking up 5 wickets for 36 runs. In reply, the Mumbai Indians finished at 191 for 5 despite a fighting effort. Suryakumar Yadav led the chase with 67 off 43 balls, while Naman Dhir scored a rapid 46 off 24 balls. Tilak Varma made 25 before retiring out, and Hardik Pandya remained unbeaten on 28. However, regular wickets and a controlled spell from Digvesh Rathi, who took 1 for 21 in 4 overs, kept MI short of the target.
In the chase where the Punjab Kings pulled off a thrilling win against the Gujarat Titans, the match went down to the final ball in Ahmedabad. Chasing 200, PBKS reached 200 for 7 in 19.5 overs to win by 3 wickets. Gujarat Titans earlier posted 199 for 4 in 20 overs, led by Shubman Gill’s unbeaten 89 off 48 balls, which included 6 fours and 4 sixes. Sai Sudharsan added 33, while Rahul Tewatia finished strongly with 23 off just 8 balls. Kagiso Rabada was the pick of the bowlers for PBKS with 2 wickets.
(Punjab Kings defeated Gujarat Titans by 3 wickets)
In reply, the Punjab Kings had a shaky start but stayed in the game through key contributions. Shashank Singh played a match-winning knock of 61 not out off 29 balls, hitting 6 fours and 4 sixes. He got strong support from Ashutosh Sharma, who scored 31 off 17 balls, and Prabhsimran Singh’s 35. Despite losing wickets at regular intervals, PBKS held their nerve in the final over.
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