Indian cricket team wicket-keeper Rishabh Pant has been appointed Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. Pant, who has previously captained Delhi Capitals in the competition, was bought by LSG for a record Rs 27 crore. Pant was the DC skipper in 2021, 2022 and 2024 but he decided to part ways with the franchise ahead of the new season. Pant became the costliest player to be sold in the history of IPL auctions following a bidding war between LSG and DC. While DC used their Right To Match (RTM), LSG clinched the deal with a record bid.

“Rishabh Pant will not only be the most valuable player of IPL but the best player,” LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka said on Monday.

He will now be LSG’s fourth captain in their history of playing in the IPL after KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran and Krunal Pandya.

After making the playoffs in the IPL 2022 and 2023 seasons, LSG missed the playoffs for the first time in 2024, as they finished seventh on the points table with a poor net run rate.

This will be the second IPL team Pant will be captaining after leading Delhi Capitals (DC).

Pant had been DC’s captain from 2021 to 2024 editions of the IPL, barring the 2023 season, which he missed due to recovery from various injuries sustained in a car accident in December 2022.

But ahead of the IPL 2025 retention deadline, he was released by DC, with the leadership role being the main reason behind his nine-year association with the franchise ending on October 31.

At LSG, Pant will work with head coach Justin Langer, whom he met during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy series in Australia, and team mentor Zaheer Khan. In the batting department, Pant will be joined by Nicholas Pooran, David Miller, Mitchell Marsh and Aiden Markram, as well as Ayush Badoni, Aryan Juyal, Abdul Samad and Himmat Singh.

In the bowling department, he will have the services of Indian seamers Akash Deep and Avesh Khan, alongside previously retained players Ravi Bishnoi, Mayank Yadav, and Mohsin Khan, among others.

(With IANS inputs)