Goenka has three months to decide on retaining KL Rahul
Sanjeev Goenka considers KL Rahul like family but would not reveal whether the Indian wicket-keeper batsman will be retained for the next three seasons
Goenka has three months to decide on retaining KL Rahul
Sanjeev Goenka considers KL Rahul like family but would not reveal whether the Indian wicket-keeper batsman will be retained for the next three seasons. "As far as I am concerned, I consider him a part of my family. He knows that too," Goenka told in an exclusive interaction on Wednesday.
Rahul led his Lucknow Super Giants for three years but their equation has been the subject of much controversy since last season when LSG lost by 10 wickets against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
"He (Rahul) has been there since the inception of Lucknow Super Giants. He has led us for three years. I have recorded before and I have no hesitation in saying again that he wanted to win. KL is an important part. Super Giants family, I don't know. That has to be decided on this matter.
Speculation is rife as to whether Rahul will continue as captain. "What's your opinion," quipped Goenka in quick response, refusing a direct answer.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), in talks with owners of Indian Premier League (IPL) franchises recently, is expected to come up with a policy on retention. Does LSG have a position on this? Goenka refused to spell out the franchise's stand.
"We don't even know what the BCCI's retention policy is going to be. Let the BCCI announce the policy. Then we will have three months to decide. It is too early to decide on something like that." He, however, made it clear that he was in favor of the continuation of the mega-auction. "Yes, it should be."
Alongside Zaheer Khan, Goenka outlined what he expects from the new mentor. "We want to inculcate the habit of winning, making winning a habit. For Zaheer, through his playing career and then in his non-playing career, winning was his way of life. That's what we want and that's what we're going to get. That's when I realized that He is no longer with Mumbai Indians, I approached him."
Zaheer replaces Gautam Gambhir, who was the team's mentor for the first two seasons, when LSG made the playoffs. But they could not reach the last four in the third season. Goenka blamed the poor results on the absence of a mentor.
"We all learn from mistakes. I think it's not just strategic direction and advice (from a mentor), but also input. It's about players being comfortable in their skin. They go out and express themselves and do it with freedom. Clarity I think that's where we felt we missed something last year.
"We lost that game badly to Hyderabad, then we lost to Delhi in a game we could have won. Against Gujarat we should have won by a better margin. We took it to the 20th over. Those are the circumstances. We have no one to blame but ourselves. Nobody but we're here to improve and we know you're not going to win every year and as long as you have that attitude to win and you have that attitude to improve from losses and mistakes, I'm satisfied."
Goenka bought the franchise in 2022 for INR 7090 crore, making LSG the most expensive team in the IPL. He has no regrets about such a big investment. "I'm very happy, I'm happy and I'm excited. I see the ratings are increasing. We have to improve our performance.
