Rishabh Pant might have tasted some success as Lucknow Super Giants captain in IPL 2025 but has failed to fire as a batter completely. A Rs 27 crore price tag seems to be an additional burden on the misfiring southpaw apart from the role of captaincy. Perhaps, such is the impact that Pant has now consistently underperformed, raising a concern for LSG.
Is LSG captaincy taking a toll on the batter Pant?
Pant replaced KL Rahul as the LSG skipper after being bought for a whooping Rs 27 crore in the mega auction. After missing IPL 2023 following a horrific car accident, he made his comeback with quite some statement in 2024. He made 446 runs in 13 matches. Despite finishing 6th on the points table, DC were able to get 7 wins from 14 matches.
| Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | No Result | Win% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 44 | 23 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 53.48 |
However, things seem to have changed this time. LSG have only won two out of four matches in IPL 2025. What’s worse is Pant’s scores. He has only managed to register scores of 0, 15, 2 and 2 from four matches.
It is pertinent to point out that Pant hasn’t had much game time before IPL 2025. In fact, he was benched throughout the Champions Trophy despite being a part of the Indian squad. He entered IPL 2025 as the highest-paid cricketer in addition to the fact that he is also under the constant scrutiny of LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka.
On the occasion of both of LSG’s losses this season, Goenka was seen having an animated chat with Pant on the sidelines following the games. Pretty much similar to what he used to do with ex-captain KL Rahul. One can argue that it could possibly take a toll on Pant’s mindset and affect his batting as well.
If there is one solution to this issue, then it could possibly be giving up captaincy to foucs on his batting instead.
Pooran, Badoni other options
Not all highest-retained players from other IPL teams have been made captains for IPL 2025. Yet, LSG is not short of any alternatives for Pant as skipper.
To start with, Nicholas Pooran emerges as frontrunner to replace Pant. After all, he is next in line simply because he is the team’s highest-paid retention. And he’s no stranger to leading a team as well. Besides, he has also consistently performed in IPL 2025.
Should LSG hunt for a young Indian captain, then the obvious choice could be Ayush Badoni. Like Pooran, Badoni has also been consistently performing for the franchise. In fact, earlier in February, Pant had opted to not captain Delhi and let Ayush do so instead in the Ranji Trophy second leg, vowing to support him by all means possible. He has the option to do so this time too.
But one should note that Pant has been paid Rs 27 crore by LSG. It means there is no other option but for the southpaw to lead the team in IPL 2025. However, it is also important for Pant to rediscover his form. And if giving up captaincy could ease the pressure, then why not?
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