Virender Sehwag, former India captain, has slammed the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) owner Sanjiv Goenka for his heated argument with captain KL Rahul. This incident happened after LSG was brutally smashed by Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Hyderabad in the ongoing IPL 2024.
SRH chased down the 166-run target in just 9.4 overs with Travis Head making 89* in 30 balls, while Abhishek Sharma scored 75* in 28 balls, taking their team to a 10-wicket win. With this loss, the chances of LSG qualifying for the playoffs took a big hit.
After the match, Sanjiv Goenka was seen having a heated chat with KL Rahul and was seemingly shouting angrily at the LSG captain. KL Rahul could be seen helplessly listening to Goenka while trying to explain his side.
Everything was captured on camera and evoked angry reactions from former cricketers and fans alike.
Former India cricketer Virender Sehwag reckoned that the owners should only be meeting the players if they have something positive or motivational to talk about and leave the rest of the cricketing responsibilities on the shoulders of the captain and the support staff.
“The owner's role should be that when they meet the players in the dressing room or during a press meet, they should only talk to motivate them. But if the owner comes and asks - 'What is going on? What's the problem?' or gets hold of one of the team management members and starts to raise questions about a particular player...see the coaches and the captain run the team, so it is better for these owners not to get involved with players or get angry with me,” he said on Cricbuzz.
Sehwag then slammed Goenka for his act, saying that being a businessman, he did not incur a loss after LSG's defeat against SRH. He stated that regardless of how the club plays, the owners make a significant profit, adding that the only loss he may face is Rahul leaving the franchise at the end of the 2024 season.
“These are all businessmen. They only understand profit and loss. But here, there is no loss, so what's bothering them? You are earning a 400-crore profit. I mean, this is a business where you have to do nothing at all. You have guys to take care of that, and irrespective of what happens, you are earning profit. So, you're work should only be to motivate the players. What happens is that the player will think that there are other franchises in the IPL, if I leave, someone else will take me. And if you lose a player, your chances of winning are zero. When I left Punjab, they were fifth. They never came fifth in any other seasons,” he said.
