NEW DELHI: There has been a lot of chatter among cricket fans regarding Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) owner Sanjiv Goenka‘s strict approach. Many believe Goenka demands strong results from his team. The discussions intensified recently after Goenka’s interactions with Rishabh Pant following LSG’s defeats sparked fresh speculation.
The conversation around Goenka’s involvement began last year when he was seen having a heated discussion with then-captain KL Rahul after LSG’s heavy loss to SunRisers Hyderabad. Eventually, KL Rahul moved on from LSG and joined Delhi Capitals for the IPL 2025 season.
However, former LSG spinner Amit Mishra offered clarification, describing Goenka as a friendly and approachable figure who simply wants the best for his team.
“I spoke to the coach last season, and he told me that captain KL Rahul was doing all the work. He was making the 11s, making all the changes, and planning. But this year, I don’t feel like that. This year, after Zaheer Khan has come, I feel like he is talking to everyone. If you see, there is a discussion going on, they are talking to each other. With Digvesh Rathi the coach was talking,” Mishra said on Cricbuzz.
“If you talk about the owner, I never felt he was too involved. Of course, he wanted the team to win. But we did lose matches and after that he never talked loudly or said anything wrong. I feel that the media has shown a little too much. I didn’t feel that there was anything negative like that. But if there is any owner, he says that losing is okay, but just go out there and show some fight.
“Fight and lose, I have no problem. This is what people told me. This is what happened. Even after losing badly in Kolkata and Hyderabad, the owner came into the dressing room and motivated the team. He never said anything wrong or in a very high tone,” he further added.
As things stand, LSG are sixth on the points table with 5 wins and 5 losses from 10 matches.
