Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) are poised to bid farewell to their captain, KL Rahul, ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) mega auction. The IPL governing council has set October 31 as the deadline for teams to finalize their retained and released player lists.
According to Cricbuzz, Rahul has expressed his desire to depart LSG after the management declined his request to bat in the middle order due to team composition and dynamics. The report also suggests that LSG may exercise their Right To Match (RTM) card for Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis.
“While LSG has the option to exercise the RTM for Rahul, the chances of that happening are remote – virtually nil. They may do it for a player like Marcus Stoinis,” the report states.
With Rahul’s departure imminent, LSG is expected to retain Nicholas Pooran, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan, and Ayush Badoni, with the latter two being uncapped retentions.
Rahul has been linked to several teams ahead of the auction, but if he enters the bidding pool, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) is likely to pursue their former player aggressively. Rahul played for RCB in 2013 and 2016 before joining Punjab in 2018.
Rahul’s strike rate has been a concern for LSG. Since the 2019 IPL season, he has not scored at a strike rate above 140, dropping as low as 113 in 2023.
If Rahul and LSG mutually part ways, he will become one of the most sought-after Indian players in the auction pool. Rahul has amassed 4,683 IPL runs at an average of 45 and a strike rate of 134.
Rahul’s recent struggles have extended to the international arena, as he was dropped from India’s playing XI for the second Test against New Zealand in Pune. However, he has been included in the squad for the upcoming Test tour of Australia.
