IPL | Pant will probably be the best captain IPL has seen, declares LSG owner Goenka
Lucknow Super Giants owner Sanjeev Goenka on Monday confirmed Rishabh Pant as the new franchise skipper in an announcement ceremony in Kolkata. Goenka revealed the team was willing to pay any amount to acquire the talisman and predicted Pant would end up with "at least 5-6 IPL titles."
Lucknow Super Giants became the seventh IPL team to announce their captain for the 2025 season during an event in Kolkata broadcasted by the Star network. Owner Sanjeev Goenka was present with the skipper himself to make the announcement, revealing he had been waiting to be in person with Pant to make the declaration. The prolific businessman had high praise for the Indian veteran and compared him to five-time IPL winning captains Rohit Sharma and MS Dhoni, whose IPL captaincy resume so far reads two seasons at the helm of Delhi Capitals with the franchise failing to make it to the playoffs on both occassions.
“Rishabh Pant isn’t just going to be the best player of LSG but of IPL itself. Never seen someone with so much passion. He’s the boy next door, his connect with the players, teams and thought process is different. Conventional thought process lacks uniqueness. I see him as a born leader. From my point of view, he will probably be the best captain IPL has seen,” Goenka claimed.
“He will play 10-15 years. During that time he can win at least 5-6 IPL titles. People will say, ‘Mahi, Rohit, Rishabh’,” he added.
LSG acquired Pant for a tournament record INR 27 crores by outbidding Punjab Kings and Delhi Capitals despite the later playing the Right to Match card at INR 20.75 crores. Goenka divulged that the wicket-keeper batter was the priority heading into the mega-auction and the franchise was willing to go even further if the situation demanded such.
“I wanted to get Rishabh Pant, which was the endpoint. I didn’t care about others and their opinions on which team wanted Pant. I was confident I wanted to get Rishabh Pant, and I knew no one could match my bid. I was never stressed. But we wanted Rishabh at all costs, irrespective of the price. We were ready to go for Pant at any price; we kept 27 INR crore for him aside, and we would have increased that budget if it was the case,” he added,” Goenka said.
Pant will take over the newly assmebled unit from KL Rahul who led the team to the playoffs in its first two seasons before their performance devolved in 2024 and the team ended up seventh in the table.
“Amazing. Right now, I just have one word: I’m overwhelmed. Just as a player, when your owner supports you in this way and helps you, your confidence level and commitment will go to 200%,” Pant said in response to Goenka's teammates.
“One aspect of my captaincy is to be very pro-active. It’s something that I have learned more in the past 1-2 years. It makes communication with players better. There are a lot of international players – aligning the thought process with them – is the biggest challenge. It’s a give and take. I like to play percentage cricket. Sanjiv sir also has the same thought process. You don’t have to win every match – if you win 60-70 per cent of your matches, you are still there. Over expectations shouldn’t ruin your season,” he said further on his captaincy style.
The 27-year-old had two other competitors for the leadership role in Nicholas Pooran, who in the past has led MI New York and MI Emirates to the trophy in Major League Cricket and ILT20 respectively, and David Miller who is presently captaining Paarl Royals in SA20.
“Nicholas Pooran is my friend. I have had chats with him when I was recovering. David Miller has been phenomenal. What he’s doing and his experience. Finishing the games. There’re lot of youngsters,” Pant said of his teammates.
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