KL Rahul is likely to be up for sale in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 auction as the India batter isn’t on Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) list of retained players, according to reports. Rahul, who led LSG in all the franchise’s three seasons in the cash-rich league, has been in headlines after owner Sanjiv Goenka’s animated chat with his skipper following defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad last season went viral on social media.
Based on a Espncricinfo report, Nicholas Pooran, Mayank Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi are LSG’s possible first three retentions alongside the uncapped duo of Mohsin Khan and Ayush Badoni. In case Rahul isn’t retained, Pooran gives the management a leadership option, having led the West Indies in the past.
However, with the right-to-match (RTM) option available at the IPL 2025 auction, LSG can still get back Rahul if they change their mind at the last minute. According to the report, Pooran will LSG’s top retention, followed by Mayank, who made his India debut against Bangladesh recently. Leg-spinner Bishnoi will be their third-choice retention.
Pooran a potential captaincy option
Pooran had also captained LSG in the first half of IPL 2024 when Rahul sat out due to a niggle. Considered as one of the hard hitters of the ball in the shortest format, Pooran was brought by LSG ahead of IPL 2023 and the southpaw lived up to his expectations.
He scored 358 runs (15 matches) in IPL 2023, before bettering his stats in the following season, accumulating 499 runs in 14 games. As far as Mayank is concerned, the Delhi pacer grabbed the limelight in IPL 2024 with his lightning-fast pace.
However, his joy was shortlived with a side strain which put him in the sidelines for almost 6 months before making a comeback in national colours against Bangladesh. Bishnoi, for his part, joined LSG in 2022 and has been consistently among wickets.
As far as Mohsin and Badoni are concerned, both joined LSG in 2022 and have been an integral part of the team’s success. While Mohsin impressed straightaway in his debut season, Badoni recently played for India A in Emerging Asia Cup.
Earlier this year, Rahul flew down to Kolkata to visit Sanjiv Goenka in the latter’s office. Although, both Rahul and Goenka remained tight-lipped about their discussion, the franchise announced former India pacer Zaheer Khan as the mentor of the side.
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