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Legendary Indian cricketer Sunil Gavaskar has made a bold statement on Rishabh Pant’s decision to step down as Lucknow Super Giants’ captain even before the IPL 2026 season has ended.
Before the IPL 2026 final between the Gujarat Titans and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Rishabh Pant stepped down as LSG captain after another disappointing season, where the team finished at the bottom of the table with just four wins in 14 games.
Sunil Gavaskar feels for Rishabh Pant after quitting LSG captaincy
It was shocking that Rishabh Pant himself asked to leave the captaincy role, and the franchise accepted it openly. The ₹27 crore star failed miserably both as captain and batter since joining the LSG.
Now, Sunil Gavaskar has shared his thoughts on the shocking development. The former India captain pointed out how Pant had mentioned many times about confusion inside the Lucknow Super Giants setup because of too many voices and ideas coming from different directions.
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LSG’s coaching setup has several big names like Justin Langer, Tom Moody, Bharat Arun, Lance Klusener, and Kane Williamson. It is being said that the mix of so many opinions made things complicated for Rishabh Pant, and Gavaskar is excited to see the upcoming changes at the side.
Talk is cheap: Sunil Gavaskar’s blunt take on LSG coaching setup
Sunil Gavaskar wrote in his column for Sportstar: “Rishabh Pant stepping down as the captain of his team, which finished bottom of the table, is the first change in captaincy for the next season, as there could well be many more before the new season starts next year.
He did say on more than one occasion that there were too many voices in his ear and too many thought processes, which is definitely not a compliment to the support staff. Whether that leads to a wholesale change at the franchise will be interesting to see.”
Slamming the LSG support staff for too much interference, the legendary batter wrote, “Talk is easy, and it is cheap too, and making big claims like some coaches have may make good headlines, but cricket has a funny way of biting on the backside.”
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Other teams must learn: Sunil Gavaskar lauds Andy Flower after RCB’s back-to-back IPL titles
Meanwhile, the 1983 World Cup winner also praised Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) head coach Andy Flower. RCB has now won back-to-back IPL titles, and Gavaskar lauded Flower for allowing his players to focus on their game without too much noise.
The legendary cricketer said that the coaches from the other IPL teams must learn from Flower and RCB support staff to keep things simple and stable to become a successful team.
Gavaskar signed off by saying, “Andy Flower, the coach of RCB, which has now won two back-to-back titles, is a fine example of someone who works quietly, with no big statements that make headlines. And no golfing and beer-drinking buddies as members of his support staff either. Maybe there’s a lesson there. If only those who appoint them could see that, then their teams would not be out of contention even before the first month of the tournament is over.”
