Overview
- LSG confirmed that Rishabh Pant asked to be relieved of the captaincy and the franchise accepted the request, a move announced Tuesday by the club and its director of cricket Tom Moody.
- Lucknow finished 10th in IPL 2026 with four wins from 14 matches and Pant recorded one of his weakest seasons with 312 runs in 14 games and a single half-century.
- Former spinner Ravichandran Ashwin publicly blamed specific management choices, saying LSG repeatedly backed Nicholas Pooran despite poor form, sidelined Ayush Badoni and other domestic options, shifted Pant in the batting order instead of keeping him as an opener, and preferred Avesh Khan over Akash Singh.
- Former batter Sanjay Manjrekar rejected the idea that captaincy alone explains Pant's form and said the franchise made the right decision to change leadership while expressing hope the move helps Pant recover his batting.
- The club has said it will focus on rebuilding and restructuring but has not announced a new captain or concrete roster moves, and public scrutiny from senior commentators increases pressure on internal reviews and selection decisions.