KL Rahul was roped in as the captain of the Lucknow Super Giants.
The Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), one of the two new franchises in the Indian Premier League (IPL), is gearing up for the upcoming IPL 2022 mega auction. The franchise has recently unveiled its official logo.
The new IPL franchise picked Andy Flower as their head coach and Gautam Gambhir as their mentor, while KL Rahul was roped in as the captain of the team by securing him for a whopping Rs 17 crores ahead of the mega auction. Given the huge amount, there will definitely be pressure on Rahul.
Well, the team mentor, Gambhir, admitted that Rahul will be under pressure, not because of his price tag, but because of his performance in the upcoming IPL 2022.
He further added that it is his job as a mentor and his support staff to help Rahul focus on his performance and not the price tag.
Gautam Gambhir told NDTV: “It is for the support staff to make him feel free. The biggest burden will not be the price tag but the pressure to perform.”
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Talking about the upcoming IPL 2022 auction strategy, Gambhir said that the Lucknow Super Giants franchise is looking for players who would prefer to focus on playing only for the franchise during the IPL 15.
He added, “We want players who are honest, want to play for the franchise, and who do not think of playing for India in those two months. Playing for India is a by-product. We want performances for Lucknow.”
Meanwhile, Lucknow franchise owner Sanjiv Goenka said that appointing KL Rahul as the captain of the Lucknow franchise was a 'no brainer'. Goenka further said that he was not only impressed by Rahul's calm approach to the game but also by his temperament.
Goenka told NDTV: “Appointing KL as captain was no brainer. We approached him and there was a meeting of minds. I am very impressed with his cool approach and unflappable temperament. He is not very expressive and that's also the way I am.”
He signed off by saying, “Gautam suggested we go in with an uncapped player. Bishnoi is a wicket-taker and an outstanding fielder. The combination is very good. If you have more players of the national team in the IPL team, it will add to brand value. Eventually what will enhance brand value is wins. One needs to perform to win and compete effectively.”
(With NDTV Inputs)