New Delhi [India] April 12 (ANI): Gujarat Titans spinner Rashid Khan emphasized the importance of hunger in sports. He argued that focusing on the process--effort, performance, and hunger--is more crucial than the result, which comes at the end. Without that, achieving success becomes challenging, Rashid Khan said in a video posted by IPL.

'You know, definitely hunger is very important. You know, in sports, wherever you are, you should have that. If you don't have that hunger, then it's difficult to perform there because the result comes at the end. If it comes at the end, then why think about it first? First, think about the thing that we start with. If you don't have that hunger, then it's difficult to perform there,' Rashid Khan said.

The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) will face the Gujarat Titans (GT) today in the 26th match of IPL 2025. The game is scheduled at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow.

LSG head coach Justin Langer highlighted the importance of hunger in great players, citing Brian Lara's philosophy. He emphasized that top athletes possess an insatiable desire for success, pushing them to train harder, stay healthy, and constantly strive for improvement. This hunger, Langer suggested, becomes an addiction that drives them to excel.

'I remember talking to Brian Lara one day, and he said, JL, when I have a good day, I make sure I have a great day. The most important ingredient of the greatest players, they have this incredible hunger. Because of that, they train harder, they stay healthy, they practise, and they just want more and more. It's like addictive,' Justin Langer said.

LSG, led by Rishabh Pant, seeks to enhance their track record against GT, who have emerged victorious in four out of their five prior meetings. GT, under the leadership of Shubman Gill, have displayed consistent performance this season. They are at the top of the points table with four wins and a loss in five matches. On the other hand, LSG are placed fifth in the table with three wins and two losses in five matches.

Gujarat Titans: B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (Captain), Jos Buttler (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Sherfane Rutherford, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammad Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ishant Sharma, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Arshad Khan, Jayant Yadav, Nishant Sindhu, Kulwant Khejroliya, Gerald Coetzee, Manav Suthar, Kumar Kushagra, Gurnoor Brar, Karim Janat.

Lucknow Super Giants: Lucknow Super Giants: Rishabh Pant (c&wk), David Miller, Aiden Markram, Aryan Juyal (wk), Himmat Singh, Matthew Breetzke, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Mitchell Marsh, Abdul Samad, Shahbaz Ahmed, Yuvraj Chaudhary, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Arshin Kulkarni, Ayush Badoni, Shardul Thakur, Avesh Khan, Akash Deep, Manimaran Siddharth, Digvesh Rathi, Akash Singh, Shamar Joseph, Prince Yadav, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi. (ANI)