‘Let Him Bat Freely’: Manoj Tiwary, Rohan Gavaskar Want Rishabh Pant Out of Captaincy

Rishabh Pant is facing captaincy pressure as experts urge LSG to remove him from leadership and let him focus on batting in IPL 2026.

Former cricketers have amplified calls to strip Rishabh Pant of captaincy at Lucknow Super Giants as their IPL 2026 campaign falters. After a loss to the Mumbai Indians at Wankhede, Manoj Tiwary and Rohan Gavaskar joined Wasim Jaffer in urging a leadership change. They believe removing captaincy pressure could help Rishabh Pant rediscover his batting form.

Pant joined the franchise in 2025 under owner Sanjiv Goenka and was expected to lead a long-term project. However, he has scored just 204 runs in 9 matches this season at a strike rate of 128.30, with only 1 fifty. He had earlier managed 269 runs in 14 innings in 2025 at an average of 24.45.

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“Sanjiv Goenka had once said in an interview that he wants Pant to create a legacy, play for LSG for the next 10–15 years and win trophies. But sometimes you’ve got to put certain players out of the firing line. After this season, LSG must decide whether they want to keep him as captain. He should be allowed to focus only on his batting, because we all know his capabilities and talent. When the team performs badly, that pressure also falls on the skipper. So release him from that and allow him to play freely,” Gavaskar opined when talking to Cricbuzz.

“I feel that, under the pressure of captaincy, we are losing Pant the batter – someone who has performed in international cricket and the IPL previously. He is not getting those runs this season. So release him from the captaincy burden and let him play purely as a batter. That would be best for LSG,” Tiwary joined in.

Aiden Markram Emerges as LSG Captaincy Option

Earlier, Wasim Jaffer had suggested Aiden Markram as a potential captain for Lucknow Super Giants. Markram has led South Africa in T20Is and guided Sunrisers Eastern Cape to titles in 2023 and 2024, while contributing as a top-order batter. Jaffer said Markram’s calm approach and leadership skills could benefit the side.

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In the tournament, LSG sits at the bottom with 4 points from 9 matches. They must win all 5 remaining games to reach 14 points and stay in contention.

Their schedule includes Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 7 in Lucknow, Chennai Super Kings on May 10 in Chennai and May 15 in Lucknow, Rajasthan Royals on May 19 in Jaipur, and Punjab Kings on May 23 in Lucknow.