Team owner of Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Sanjiv Goenka, could be seen engaged in a spirited conversation with the team captain, Rishabh Pant, and other coaches including Justin Langer, Kane Williamson, and Tom Moody at Ekana Stadium on Wednesday, April 1. The congregation followed the six-wicket defeat of the team to the Delhi Capitals (DC) to begin their Indian premier league (IPL) 2026 season on a bad note.
LSG, batting under Axar Patel, had a poor performance with the bat in front of their home crowd. The opening role given to Rishabh Pant did not succeed much and other star players such as Ayush Badoni and Nicholas Pooran also failed.
Protecting a paltry 142-run total, LSG were in the game when their seam bowling attack left the visitors 26-4 at one point. But the dominance of Rishabh Pant and the colleagues slowly wore out as the duo of Sameer Rizvi and Tristan Stubbs matched unbeaten to see DC across the finish line.
After the game, Sanjiv Goenka was caught on the field talking to Rishabh Pant. We have seen the skipper making much hand gestures and the franchise owner also pointed out his finger, which indicated anything but a casual talk. Check out some of the snatches of the conversation right here:
BEFORE KL RAHUL, NOW RISHABH PANT 💔
Winning and losing are part of the game, but public humiliation shouldn't be. If Sanjiv Goenka has concerns, they belong in the dressing room, not on a global broadcast. Lecturing a captain like KL Rahul & Rishabh Pant in front of cameras… pic.twitter.com/YDCjeacYAt
— Cricket Central (@CricketCentrl) April 1, 2026Sanjiv Goenka having a chat with the team support staff after the loss. pic.twitter.com/qUCi913h57
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) April 1, 2026Sanjiv Goenka had had a similar lively interaction with Rishabh Pant during a rogue IPL 2025 season. Before that, the team owner had made headlines following his on-field outburst at the time when the team lost to the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by a huge margin after his rant against then-captain KL Rahul.
Sanjiv Goenka assures full backing for Rishabh Pant through social media post after LSG vs DC IPL 2026 match
Despite losing the series opener, Sanji Goenka sent a good message on social media following the match, in which DC chased down the score in 17.1 overs to secure the points. He fully supported skipper Rishabh Pant and believes the team will soon recover.
“This is a long season, and moments like these are part of building something meaningful. I have full confidence in our captain and the team to respond with strength. To our fans, thank you for your support at Ekana today, we will come back stronger. The story of @LucknowIPL this season is far from written,” he posted on X.
On Sunday, April 5, LSG will play the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium.
