KL Rahul desperate to be retained by Lucknow Super Giants; Sanjiv Goenka meeting details revealed

Former Indian skipper KL Rahul has reportedly expressed his desire to be retained by the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of the mega auction.

However, the LSG management is waiting for the BCCI to finalize the Indian Premier League (IPL) retention policy before making any decisions.

KL Rahul joined the Lucknow Super Giants ahead of the IPL 2022 season. The right-handed batter was named captain of the Lucknow-based team in the IPL.

The LSG team failed to advance to the playoffs during the IPL 2024 season, which was the first time in their first three editions of the event.

On Monday, the 32-year-old cricketer traveled to Kolkata to meet with LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka before the IPL 2025 retention announcement.

There had been speculation that Rahul might leave LSG for the next IPL season. Rahul had a meeting at Goenka's office on Judges Court Road in Kolkata.

The details of KL Rahul's meeting with Goenka are still unclear. The meeting lasted about an hour, and they could have discussed the roadmap and the future of the Lucknow Super Giants' captaincy for the next season. The BCCI is scheduled to conduct a mega auction ahead of the next season.

KL Rahul Wants To Be Retained Ahead Of IPL 2025 Mega Auction

According to PTI, KL Rahul wants to be retained by the Lucknow Super Giants. However, the franchise has not yet made any commitments.

The franchise is waiting to find out the number of players they can retain and the new budget before committing to any players.

"Yes, Rahul came to Kolkata and met Dr Goenka at RPG head office. He has clearly told Dr Goenka that he wants to be retained. However, till BCCI comes up with retention policy, LSG management wouldn't want to chalk out their plans," an IPL Governing Council member, privy to developments in LSG, told PTI on the condition of anonymity.

"Look, Rahul wants retention but till LSG knows how many are to be retained and what's the new purse, they can't commit anyone," the IPL source said.

Last year, KL Rahul had an animated conversation with Sanjiv Goenka after a heavy loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad, and the video went viral across social media platforms.

They suffered a defeat due to Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma’s onslaught, which dented their playoff chances in the IPL 2024.

The Karnataka batter is unlikely to be the top choice even if he is retained by LSG. Rahul's retention as the first player could cost around Rs 18 to 20 crore, depending on the team’s budget.

The LSG team might not be willing to spend that much on Rahul given the availability of X-factor players in the auction.

LSG has finalized a deal with Zaheer Khan, who will soon be announced as a mentor for the team.

According to a report in Cricbuzz, Zaheer Khan might also take on the role of bowling coach for the next IPL season, in addition to his mentoring duties.

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