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Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer supports captain Rishabh Pant despite the team's poor performance in IPL 2026. Langer cites Pant's impressive practice game, where he scored 95 runs off 30 balls, as evidence of his potential return to form.
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NEW DELHI: Lucknow Super Giants head coach Justin Langer has thrown his full support behind captain Rishabh Pant despite another disappointing outing in the IPL 2026, insisting the wicketkeeper-batter is ānot far offā rediscovering his best.
LSG slumped to yet another defeat, against Mumbai Indians on Monday, leaving them rooted to the bottom of the table with just two wins in nine matches. Much of the scrutiny has centred on Pantās form and his decision to shuffle the batting order, but Langer offered a strong defence of both.
Revealing a glimpse of Pantās recent form behind the scenes, Langer highlighted a stunning practice performance that convinced the team management of his readiness.
āWe played a practice game here two days ago, and Rishi⦠maybe 95 off 40 or 30 balls ā youāre just looking at it and you go, āOh my gosh, thatās Rishabh Pant at his very best,āā Langer said.
āSo, heās a very good player; we know that. Weāve seen him in Test cricket destroy teams at number five, and we felt today⦠it might be a good option for the team.ā
āSelflessā move for the team
Pantās decision to push himself down the order, allowing Nicholas Pooran to bat higher, raised eyebrows ā but Langer described it as a selfless call taken purely in the teamās interest.
āHe selflessly moved down the order to let Nicky P bat, whose batting was unbelievable,ā Langer explained, referring to Pooranās explosive 63 off 21 balls.
Backing his captainās leadership, Langer added, āAs a captain in the IPL⦠youāve got to keep fronting up. Thatās all you can do, and heāll keep fronting up and hopefully help us get some wins.ā
The coach also dismissed suggestions that Pantās record price tag is affecting his performances.
āHonestly, I donāt think the money has anything to do with it⦠leadership is a tough position, youāre carrying lots of pressure, and he knows that,ā he said. āHeās working hard⦠and heās not far off.ā
Pant admits LSG fell short
Pant himself acknowledged that LSG left runs on the table after a strong start.
āDefinitely, the way we started, I think we should have gotten more runs⦠we were short 10-15 runs because it was a 220-230 wicket,ā he said.
While refusing to blame the bowlers, Pant admitted the team needs a bit of fortune to turn things around. āI think we need some good luck⦠and itās going to take some more effort from us, for sure.ā
Justin Langer praised Rishabh Pant's recent practice performance, stating he scored 95 runs off 30 balls, indicating Pant is close to regaining his best form.
Lucknow Super Giants are struggling in IPL 2026, currently at the bottom of the table with only two wins out of nine matches.
Rishabh Pant is under scrutiny due to his inconsistent form and decisions regarding the batting order, which have contributed to the team's poor performance.

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With their playoff hopes hanging by a thread, LSG will now hope Pantās practice brilliance soon translates into match-winning performances.
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