Sanjiv Goenka Did Not Shy Away From Sacking MS Dhoni. Will Rahul Face the Same Fate?

A video of Lucknow Super Giants owner Sanjiv Goenka’s public outburst on skipper KL Rahul after a 10-wicket loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium has gone viral. It does not make for good viewing for anyone, especially if you are an LSG fan, and it surely does not make Goenka look good in the visuals.

After SRH defeated LSG for a total of 165 in 10 overs, Goenka was seen engaging in an intense argument with LSG skipper KL Rahul, who had said that he was at a loss for words after the loss during the post-match presentation. Fans on social media did not take kindly to the visuals and called out Goenka for his actions.

While the team owners’ involvement in the game is very much justified, as a lot is riding on the team’s performances, there have been times that some of their extreme reactions have been caught on camera.

A day before, cameras caught Delhi Capitals owner Parth Jindal’s fired-up reaction to the controversial Sanju Samson dismissal in Delhi during the DC vs RR match. After the game, DC’s official social media handle posted videos of Jindal meeting RR skipper Samson and team owner Manoj Badale and congratulating the RR skipper.

On the other hand, social media is replete with videos of KKR team owner Shah Rukh Khan being gracious in defeat and meeting his team’s players and the opposition amicably.

As Goenka’s animated chat visuals aired, JioCinema experts said ‘The owner is very passionate about his team, but these conversations should be happening behind closed doors’.

“It’s an owner that’s very passionate about his team. He’s watched his team take an absolute drubbing, and, you know, the emotions are rolled over. You always feel that these conversations should be happening behind closed doors because there are so many cameras around these stadiums. They miss nothing. And, you know, KL Rahul’s now got to go to press conferences and various other things, probably potentially explain what’s being discussed,” JioCinema expert Graeme Smith said.

“Well, he’s unhappy, isn’t he? He’s clearly voicing his concerns and KL is going well, hang on. Not quite sure what you wanted us to do … If you compare that with the way the Sunrises play played, no doubt there was a distinct gap between the two teams. And, yeah, just voicing his displeasure by the look of that,” said former New Zealand coach Mike Hesson.

Everything is Not Well in LSG Camp? Question Mark Over KL Rahul?

A team owner publicly dressing down the team’s captain immediately after such a harrowing loss also fires up the rumour mills on whether everything is ok within the team. The question arises now about how someone of KL Rahul’s stature would take it.

KL Rahul has been leading the LSG franchise since 2022. The Sanjiv Goenka-owned RPSG Group won the rights for the Lucknow Super Giants franchise with a bid of Rs 7,090 crore in 2022, and the team had made the playoff in both of their previous 2 seasons – finishing 3rd on the points table but failed to reach the finals. On the other hand, Gujarat Titans, the other team that came into the fray in 2022, entered the finals twice and were the 2022 champions as well.

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This year, LSG is in contention to make the playoffs and is presently 6th with 6 wins and 6 losses in 12 games and 12 points in their kitty. CSK and DC also have 12 points each, but CSK has an extra game in hand. Personally, KL Rahul, who was in contention for a spot in India’s T20 World Cup 2024, failed to cut scoring 460 runs in 12 matches and striking 136.09.

Now, with the IPL heading into a mega auction this year, LSG could look to go into the 2025 season with a clean slate and revamp their team. KL Rahul could very well be released before the auction and could find a new home at the 2025 IPL auction.

When Sanjiv Goenka Sacked MS Dhoni as RPS Captain in 2017

In 2017, RPS owner Goenka has decided to remove India’s most successful skipper, MS Dhoni, as captain of the IPL team and hand over the mantle to Australia skipper Steven Smith.

It was a decision that received a lot of flak, but Goenka, while defending the decision, had said, “To me, the media can say whatever they want, the social media can also say whatever. I respect everything, I respect all the views, and each one is entitled to their own views. But, I do not think it is a matter of public debate as to what went behind the decision (of handing the captaincy to Smith). Sometimes the decisions are not necessarily the most popular, but that is the way it is,” Goenka told CricketNext in 2017.

“You cannot compare the track record of somebody who has had 10-15 years and somebody who is starting out afresh. But it is a question of the approach you want to take. We felt that we needed to go with a younger captain,” Goenka had told India Today on removing MS Dhoni as the skipper.