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'They want dogs but KL isn't one' - Fans react to Sanjiv Goenka's claim of retaining selfless individuals over players with 'personal aspirations'

Cricket: LSG's owner Sanjiv Goenka claimed that the Lucknow-based franchise retained only those players who had the mindset to win, not the ones with personal aspirations.

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'They want dogs but KL isn't one' - Fans react to Sanjiv Goenka's claim of retaining selfless individuals over players with 'personal aspirations'

'They want dogs but KL isn't one' - Fans react to Sanjiv Goenka's claim of retaining selfless individuals over players with 'personal aspirations' (Source: X)

Sanjiv Goenka made a massive claim after releasing the former LSG skipper KL Rahul ahead of the IPL auctions 2025. The LSG owner claimed that the focus was to retain anly those players who had the mindset to win and not the ones with 'personal aspirations'. The fans claimed it to be a direct dig at KL Rahul with whom Goenka shared an ugly moment in front the world in the live TV.

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"We wanted to retain players with the mindset to win, who would put the team winning above their personal aspirations," said Sanjiv Goenka after the retention of the LSG players. Rahul was not among the players to have been retained by LSG ahead of the IPL auction 2025.

LSG retained the likes of Nicholas Pooran, Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, and Ayush Badoni ahead of the IPL auctions 2025. Pooran was the player to have bagged the highest sum from LSG after the retention. The Southpaw was retained for a price of whopping INR 21 crores.

What was the controversy between KL Rahul and Sanjiv Goenka?

Apart from him, LSG has backed younger Indian talents. The sensational pace bowler Mayank has been retained for a price of INR 11 crores. The emerging leg spinner Ravi Bishnoi was retained for the same price. LSG banked on some of the players who have played all their seasons with LSG.

Mohsin Khan and Ayush Badoni have been retained by LSG for prices of INR 4 crores respectively. Going into the auction, the 2-time semifinalists have a purse of INR 69 crores with a possible RTM card to buy one player from their previous squad. Their purse is the 4th highest for a team.

The on-screen relationship between Goenka and Rahul was always going to be problematic. After the game between LSG and SRH in the IPL 2024, Goenka seemed to be unhappy with Rahul and exoressed the same in front of the camera. Many regarded it to be the most unprofessional moment involving an owner in the IPL history.

Here's how the fans reacted to Sanjiv Goenka's statement -

IPL LSG KL Rahul