Sanjiv Goenka, the Lucknow Super Giants owner, has made a huge revelation on the future of the Aussie legend Justin Langer with the franchise as the head coach.
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) appointed former Australian opener Justin Langer as the head coach after IPL 2023. They didn’t renew Andy Flower’s contract and decided to bring in Langer will the aim to move one step further after finishing in the top 4 in back-to-back seasons.
However, it didn’t work well for the franchise as, for the first time, they missed out on a playoffs spot. In the Indian Premier League 2024, Lucknow Super Giants finished in the seventh position on the table and played really poor cricket.
Following the team’s poor season, rumors were floating around about Justin Langer being relieved of his duties just after one season. And now Sanjiv Goenka has broken his silence on the matter
Speaking to the media, Goenka asserted that Langer is set to continue in the role along with assistant coach Lance Klusener and fielding coach Jonty Rhodes.
“One doesn’t know which way what goes. Certainly, the coach (Justin Langer) continues, Lance Klusener (assistant coach), and Jonty Rhodes (fielding coach) also continue.
“We are delighted for Morne Morkel and Gautam Gambhir, very pleased they have joined the national team,” Goenka said, as quoted by India Today.
Justin Langer To Be Joined By Zaheer Khan In IPL 2025
Justin Langer will have a new member in his support staff in IPL 2025 as the legendary India pacer Zaheer Khan has been appointed as the new mentor of the side. The position of the mentor was vacant since Gautam Gambhir left for Kolkata Knight Riders in 2024.
Notably, Zaheer will have a broader profile at the Lucknow Super Giants as, along with the mentorship role, he will be working on scouting as well as the talent development programme.
Speaking about Zaheer’s addition to the Lucknow Super Giants, the passionate LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka said that he has been highly impressed by Zaheer as a player and a coach. Citing Zaheer’s hunger for success as the reason for his appointment, Goenka said that as soon as he knew about Zaheer not having any IPL gigs on his table, he decided to approach the India great.
“Beginning of a new relationship. Zaheer has impressed me as a player, coach and strategist,” Goenka said. “His hunger for success is something that attracted me to bring him into the LSG franchise.
“A couple of weeks ago, I realised he wasn’t with any cricket franchise. I called him up. We spoke. He agreed. And he’s here. It’s as short and as quick as it gets. We are very excited to have him on board.”
Meanwhile, during the same media interaction, Sanjiv Goenka remained tight-lipped on the further of captain KL Rahul with the team.
Also, he labeled the batter as an integral part of the Lucknow Super Giants family but didn’t reveal whether the batter will be retained or released ahead of the Indian Premier League 2025 mega auction.