Former Indian star pins blame on Rishabh Pant’s woeful form as reason behind LSG’s struggles

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) is on the brink of elimination from IPL 2025 after their 37-run loss to Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Sunday night. Chasing 237 runs to win the game, PBKS managed to score just 199 runs from their 20 overs. LSG now has to win their remaining three matches with big margins if they have to make it to the playoffs this campaign. Former India batter Suresh Raina has pinned the blame on LSG skipper Rishabh Pant for his team’s struggles this campaign. 

Raina, during his post-game analysis on the host broadcaster, was heard saying, “Rishabh Pant will have to change his thinking. He is the kind of batter who can hit five sixes in ten balls. Pant was angry in the game against Punjab, and that also played a part in his dismissal.”

The former India and CSK star also added, “He has different kinds of skills, and don’t forget that he has scored six Test hundreds. His batting is behind the failures of the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL 2025, and he will have to improve his performance as the no. 4 position is very important in the batting order”

Rishabh Pant was purchased for INR 27 Crores, which is the most any player has been paid in the league’s history. Sanjiv Goenka, who is the team owner of LSG, later named Pant the captain of the side for the current season of IPL. The 27-year-old has managed to score just 128 runs with one fifty, with an average of 12.8 and a strike-rate of 99. This has been the worst season for Pant in the IPL as a batter. 

Rishabh Pant pin points where it went wrong against PBKS

It was Rishabh Pant who won the toss against Punjab and chose to bowl first. Prabhsimran Singh’s 91 helped PBKS reach a massive 236 on the board from their 20 overs. Speaking at the end of the game, Pant said, “Definitely too many runs. When you drop crucial catches at the wrong time, it can hurt you badly. We thought it would do more, but we did not pick the length right at the start. But that is part and parcel of the game,"

Lucknow heads home to take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a key encounter. If LSG loses this game, their dreams of making it to the IPL playoffs will be over. The loss on Sunday, as well as Kolkata’s one-run win over Rajasthan, saw LSG being pushed to seventh in the table. More questions will be asked of Pant if Lucknow fail to make it to the playoffs for a second successive year.