Rishabh Pant is all set to be named as the new captain of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. While an official announcement from the franchise is yet to be made, a report from ESPNcricinfo has confirmed that the 27-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman will take on the leadership role.
The Super Giants needed a new captain after opting not to retain KL Rahul ahead of the IPL 2024 mega auction. KL Rahul led the team for the first three seasons (2022-2024) and led the team to the playoffs in his first two years. However, the 2024 season was disappointing with LSG finishing seventh.
Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in IPL history
Rishabh Pant became the most expensive player in IPL history during the auction. He was bought by Super Giants (LSG) for Rs 27 crore. LSG won a fierce bidding war with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). However, Delhi Capitals (DC) exercised their right-to-match cards, forcing LSG to raise their bid to Rs 27 crore.
The wicketkeeper-batsman will lead his second IPL franchise as captain. If confirmed, he will be the fourth captain of the Lucknow team after KL Rahul, Krunal Pandya and Nicholas Pooran. Pant led the Delhi Capitals but was not retained by the franchise, prompting him to enter the auction.
The left-handed batsman represented Delhi Capitals in 111 matches from 2016 to 2024 and scored 3,284 runs at a strike rate of 148.93. He is the franchise’s all-time leading scorer. Rishabh Pant has led DC in 43 matches over three seasons, posting 23 wins, 19 losses and a win percentage of 53.48.
The RPSG Group is expected to make a statement on Monday
The RPSG group, which owns LSG, is expected to make the announcement during a press conference in Kolkata on Monday. According to an IANS report, a new LSG captain will be announced or a new jersey for the franchise will be unveiled. Some players of the team are also likely to attend the event.
The report said: “Some franchise officials spoken to by IANS said one or both of two things could happen at Monday’s press conference: the announcement of a new LSG captain or the unveiling of the franchise’s new kit by some of the team’s players who are likely to be present.”
Nicholas Pooran, Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram in the captaincy race
Ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction, Lucknow Super Giants retained five players: Nicholas Pooran, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, Ayush Badoni and Mohsin Khan. Nicholas Pooran was initially the frontrunner to captain LSG. Pooran was retained by LSG for Rs 21 crore before the mega auction.
Apart from Pant and Pooran, Mitchell Marsh (Australia T20I captain) and Aiden Markram (South Africa T20I captain) are in the captaincy race. Former Australian batsman Justin Langer has been appointed as the head coach while Zaheer Khan will act as the mentor for the upcoming IPL 2025 season.
Also read: ICC Champions Trophy 2025: Ajit Agarkar gives latest update on Jasprit Bumrah’s fitness
 for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.){kind=link}