In a major IPL player trade, India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant recently returned to Delhi Capitals (DC) for INR 15 crore. He previously earned INR 27 crore at Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
As part of the same deal, DC traded Kuldeep Yadav to LSG. The wrist-spinner kept his ₹13.25 crore contract.
Pant's first stint (2016-24) with the Capitals established him as the franchise’s all-time leading run-scorer. During this period, he played 111 matches and scored 3,284 runs at a strike rate of 148.93, including 18 half-centuries and one hundred.
The southpaw was roped in by LSG for a record sum during the IPL 2025 mega auction, but he managed just over 500 runs across two seasons with the franchise.
Under his leadership, the Super Giants endured back‑to‑back disappointing campaigns, with the side finishing seventh last year and slipping further this season by ending at the bottom of the points table.
Reflecting on the high-profile trade, former India opener Sadagoppan Ramesh highlighted that Rishabh Pant chased a higher price at the auction despite Delhi Capitals offering him INR 20-25 crore.
Ramesh claimed that Pant prioritized money but didn’t find happiness at LSG, leading him to eventually rejoin DC.
"DC never wanted to let go of Pant and never released him even in 2024. They were ready to negotiate with him and urged him not to leave. But Pant was adamant on entering the auction to go for a higher price despite DC offering him 20 to 25 crores. So he prioritised money but did not get the happiness he wanted with LSG. Otherwise he would not have left LSG for DC," Ramesh said while speaking on his YouTube channel.
"DC went till 21 crores for Pant in the 2024 auction. Yet they've got him again now for 15 crores. So it's turned out to be a clever move from DC. Pant also reached a situation where he desperately wanted to return to DC. When the price is high, the pressure to perform becomes exponentially higher and that leads to drop in performance. That's the lesson to be learnt from the Rishabh Pant situation," he added.
Ramesh believes LSG hold a clear edge in the trade, citing that Kuldeep is a highly reliable bowler who can easily take 15-20 wickets per season and Pant would need to score 450-500 runs to provide the same value to DC.
"LSG is at the advantageous situation with this trade. Kuldeep has the potential to bowl 336 deliveries in a season so his chances of taking 20 wickets in a season is extremely high. Barring one bad season this year, Kuldeep generally takes close to 15 wickets every season. For Rishabh Pant to match that, he has to score 450 to 500 runs. LSG is at a definite advantage because Kuldeep's chances of picking up 15 to 20 wickets is much higher than Pant scoring 450+ runs," Ramesh remarked.
While Kuldeep’s IPL 2026 edition was quite underwhelming, claiming 10 wickets in 12 matches at an economy rate of 10.29, the left-arm had picked up a total of 62 wickets in his previous four seasons with DC.
