Star cricketer Rishabh Pant has requested to relinquish his role as captain of the Lucknow Super Giants shortly after the franchise underwent a string of disappointing IPL seasons under his captaincy, 2026 being the latest. LSG, in turn, duly accepted the request.
The wicketkeeper-batter is likely to continue as a specialist wicketkeeper-batter with the franchise going forward. However, an official word on the matter has not been made by either the cricketer of the Lucknow-based side.
“Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) wish to formally announce that Rishabh Pant has requested to be relieved of his captaincy duties with the franchise, and the franchisee has accepted his request with immediate effect,” the team posted an official statement on their social media account on Friday, May 29.
“Rishabh approached the franchisee with this request and we have respectfully accepted it. These decisions are never easy. We are grateful for everything Rishabh has brought to this dressing room as captain. Our focus now is on the collective – rebuilding and restructuring to reach the best standards,” Tom Moody, LSG’s director of cricket, stated.
LSG had appointed Rishabh Pant as their captain after bagging him at the mega auction for a whopping INR 27.00 crore. The Haridwar-born, however, failed to live up to the massive expectations, as the franchise failed to qualify for the playoffs. 2026 was worse than the previous one, as Pant & Co. ended their campaign as the bottom toddlers, with only four wins in 14 matches.Â
On a personal front, Pant’s performance did not meet the burden of the price tag he carries as the most expensive player in the cash-rich league. In 2026, he scored 312 runs in 13 innings at an average of 28.36, while his strike rate remained quite underwhelming.
Rishabh Pant as LSG captain
| Matches | Won | Lost | Win Percentage |
| 28 | 10 | 18 | 35.71 |
It is worth mentioning that Pant was recently removed as the vice-captain of India’s Test team, with KL Rahul, the former LSG skipper, appointed as the new deputy to Shubman Gill. Chief selector Ajit Agarkar said that the Indian team wants Pant to play with full freedom to bring out the best out of his abilities as a wicketkeeper-batter for the country.
LSG has not announced their new leader as of yet, and a decision may be made closer to the 2027 season of the marquee T20 tournament.
