KL Rahul, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain, has received some support from franchise fielding coach Jonty Rhodes ahead of speculations of him and LSG parting ways. Rhodes compared Rahul’s captaincy with Rohit Sharma of MI and MS Dhoni of CSK.
Under KL Rahul’s captaincy, the LSG reached the IPL playoffs in its first two seasons, demonstrating his leadership style and the approach he fostered in the side, which pleased the Proteas even more.
The way KL Rahul has managed the team laid a solid foundation and fostered a healthy culture has prompted the South African legend to compare him to some of the IPL’s most successful leaders, including Rohit Sharma.
“I think if you look at a record as a captain of a brand-new franchise, getting into the playoffs every time as he has, it’s been something that goes a long way towards his captaincy, to the way that he leads the team and the sort of set up and the approach that he has.
So, you know, to look at Rohit’s record as a captain, Dhoni’s record as a captain, the trophies that those guys have won, and the consistency that they’ve done to winning trophies, from LSG’s point of view, it might just be one thing getting into the final, winning the trophy,” Rhodes told India Today.
Rahul met Sanjiv Goenka, owner of the LSG franchise, in Kolkata. The franchise has yet to clarify whether Rahul will keep his status as captain.
KL Rahul has done an excellent job with a brand new franchise: Jonty Rhodes
LSG has yet to win the prized IPL championship, but Rhodes believes the Lucknow franchise is on the verge of a breakthrough. Rhodes also commended KL Rahul for his efforts to cultivate a diverse collection of players, laying the framework for LSG’s future success.
“It then turns out MI didn’t win a trophy for quite a few years at the start. Once they learned how to win trophies, they kept going and kept going. So, I think from that point of view, I think he’s done an excellent job at the helm, with a brand new franchise, setting up a new culture, with new owners and, and that I think is an indication of how well he’s captained the team in a set-up where there are players from all over the country in India who are very different and all over the world,” Rhodes added.
It remains to be seen whether KL Rahul will be retained by the LSG franchise and whether he will continue as captain of the team in IPL 2025.
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