Pune, Apr 29: Kagiso Rabada struck four times as Punjab Kings upped their game in the bowling department to restrict Lucknow Super Giants to 153 for eight in the Indian Premier League here on Friday.
The second wicket stand of 85 runs between opener Quinton de Kock (46 off 37) and Deepak Hooda (34 off 28) was the lone bright spot of LSG's innings.
The pace trio of Rababda (4/38), Arshdeep Singh (0/23) and Sandeep Sharma (1/18) delivered in different ways, while leg spinner Rahul Chahar chipped in with a couple of wickets.
Punjab pacers were impressive in the powerplay after skipper Mayank Agarwal opted to bowl, limiting LSG to 39 with the crucial wicket of in-form K L Rahul (6).
While the ever improving Arshdeep and the seasoned Sandeep got the ball to swing, it was Rabada who got rid of the opposition skipper.
The South African speedster got one to straighten from good length proving it to be too good for Rahul, making it look like a proper Test match dismissal.
With the first four overs only fetching 16 runs, de Kock broke the shackles for LSG by smashing his fellow countryman Rabada for successive sixes, one a straight hit that landed on the boundary rope while the other maximum came via a massive hoick over midwicket.
Hooda, who struggled to rotate strike early on in his innings, got going with a straight six off Rishi Dhawan.
Sandeep was brilliant in his first spell conceding only eight runs in his three overs.
With LSG 67 for 1 in 10 overs, Punjab were very much in control of the game.
The 11th over of Liam Livingstone went for 15 runs and it seemed LSG were finally getting into the groove but the dismissals of set batters de Kock and Hooda increased their troubles.
De Kock was honest enough to walk back into the dressing room after getting a faint edge off Sandeep while Hooda paid the price for not being alert enough to get himself run out after a brilliant direct hit from the deep from Jonny Bairstow.
LSG's innings was going nowhere as they struggled to 109 for five in 15 overs.Cameos from Jason Holder (11 off 8), Dushmantha Chameera (17 off 10) and Mohsin Khan (13 not out off 6) allowed LSG to cross the 150-run mark.
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A live broadcast by CNN from Abu Dhabi was briefly interrupted after emergency alarm systems were activated inside the network’s office here, as tensions escalated sharply in the Middle East after US and Israel struck Iran.
Senior anchor and CNN Abu Dhabi Managing Editor Becky Anderson was on air when the alarms sounded.
Anderson informed viewers that she and her team had been instructed to seek immediate shelter in line with local emergency protocols.
“I’m Becky Anderson in Abu Dhabi with the alarms going off here suggesting we should seek immediate shelter. So we’ll do that. Our breaking news coverage continues after this short break. Stay with us,” she said before the broadcast cut.
CNN host in Abu Dhabi EVACUATES ON LIVE TELEVISION as Israel and Iran exchange fire across Middle East
— RT (@RT_com) February 28, 2026
'We'll be back after this short break' pic.twitter.com/YY5GDILBVQ
The network operates a major, state-of-the-art broadcasting and production centre in Abu Dhabi, alongside its hubs in Atlanta, London and Hong Kong.
Meanwhile, similar emergency alerts disrupted a live broadcast on Al Jazeera in Doha. National emergency warnings were heard on air, advising residents to take shelter.
During the broadcast, a presenter said the alert system had been activated following reports of an Iranian missile targeting U.S. interests in Qatar.
“This is the alarm, by the way, that we all get on our phones here in Doha when there is an urgency. And so the national emergency alert system has gone off here in Qatar. The defense ministry in Qatar announcing just a short while ago that an Iranian missile has been intercepted here in Qatar, warning citizens basically to take shelter. Apologies, there's a bit of chaos in the newsroom, as you can imagine, because this is also happening here in Qatar, our emergency systems going off here,” the presenter said.
National emergency alerts blared during a live Al Jazeera broadcast just moments before explosions were heard in Qatar’s capital, Doha. The alert came as Iranian missiles targeting US interests the country were successfully intercepted. pic.twitter.com/eT6RD8fAZT
— Al Jazeera English (@AJEnglish) February 28, 2026
The development came after Iran on Saturday attacked the UAE's Abu Dhabi and Dubai, Qatar's Doha, and Saudi Arabia's Riyadh hours after Israel and the US conducted joint strikes on Iran.
