Rishabh Pant's Special Mention For Sanjiv Goenka Amid LSG's Poor IPL 2026 Makes 200% Promise 'To Bring Happiness Back'

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Rishabh Pant had no second-thought in admitting Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) didn't play to their potential in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL). Studded with some of the biggest names in world cricket, LSG have been able to win just two of their eight games (before MI vs LSG clash) and are languishing at the bottom of the IPL 2025 points table.

LSG had a good if not great run in their first two seasons, qualifying for the playoffs in 2022 and 2023 seasons of IPL. However, things took a different turn there on as the Sanjiv Goenka -owned side finished seventh in 2024 and 2025. Pant admitted that LSG's poor show had affected Goenka - one of the passionate owners in the IPL.

Also Read | Pant reveals reason behind sending Pooran in Super Over as LSG lose to KKR

“It's been a tough season for us, and there is no running away from that, but one person for us who has had the most difficult time is our owner, Mr Goenka; he's one of those guys. Everyone knows how passionate he is about cricket and about his team,” Pant said after losing the coin toss to Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday.

The LSG skipper also vowed to give their 200% from here on and do whatever they can to bring back the smile on Goenka's face and the fans.“But at the same time we let down our fans down. The only promise is from this break is, we're gonna give our 200%, try to bring that happiness back and hopefully we can do it for our owner and the fans for sure,” he added.

LSG are coming into this game after losing to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in a Super Over at home on March 26. With a one-week break, Pant stated tha break did help to kind of get together.“It definitely [did], a lot of reflection, what we can do and what we can do as a team and as an individual,” he said.

Also Read | Is Rohit Sharma playing today in MI vs LSG?Ex-captain returns in 'specific role' Rohit Sharma returns after five games

Meanwhile, LSG were sent to bat first after Mumbai Indians captain Suryakumar Yadav won the toss. Suryakumar is leading Mumbai Indians in place of regular skipper Hardik Pandya, who suffered a back spasm while Rohit Sharma is back as an impact player.

Corbin Bosch has come in place of Trent Boult for Mumbai Indians. For LSG, Josh Inglis made his debut while Mukul Choudhary made way for debutant Akshat Raghuwanshi.

MI vs LSG playing XIs

Mumbai Indians: Ryan Rickelton (wk), Naman Dhir, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Will Jacks, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, AM Ghazanfar, Raghu Sharma.

Lucknow Super Giants: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Josh Inglis, Nicholas Pooran, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Himmat Singh, Mohammed Shami, Mohsin Khan, Avesh Khan, Prince Yadav.

Also Read | Arjun Tendulkar lands huge T20 Mumbai League pay hike amid LSG snub in IPL 2026

Catch the live updates from IPL 202 with the complete IPL 2026 Schedul and the IPL 2026 Points Tabl. Also, know who are currently leading the charts in IPL 2026 Orange Ca and IPL 2026 Purple Ca.

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