Lucknow Super Giants are one of the two new teams that will be part of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL). Owned by the RP Sanjiv Goenka group, the Super Giants will be led by KL Rahul, who made the switch from Punjab Kings ahead of the IPL 2022 Mega Auction.
RP Sanjiv Goenka group had IPL team in Rising Pune Supergiant in 2016 and 2017. The team was led by MS Dhoni and then Steve Smith and they also reached the finals of the 2017 season. The experience of already owning an IPL franchise was evident in the way the Lucknow franchise was auctioned operated and appointed their support staff.
The Lucknow Super Giants had moved in before the mega auction in KL Rahul, Marcus Stoinis and Ravi Bishnoi. During February’s Bengaluru auction, the Lucknow franchise was one of the best performers, assembling a roster that looks good to contend for the title.
Lucknow had his mentor Gautam Gambhir at the auction table along with head coach Andy Flower. Former Delhi Capitals supporter Vijay Dahiya will be her assistant coach. They also hired former Australian fast bowler Andy Bichel as their bowling coach.
BALANCED SQUAD
With KL Rahul and wicketkeeper batter Quinton de Kock, the Lucknow side have a strong opening combination at the top. They also have West Indian big hitter Evin Lewis as a possible back-up option.
In Manish Pandey, Lucknow has a reliable and experienced top-tier racquet who will be looking for a new opportunity in his IPL career.
Lucknow also scores with the all-rounders. They have Stoinis along with Jason Holder and Kyle Mayers as their overseas all-rounders. When it comes to homegrown players, LSG have solid names in Deepak Hooda, K Gowtham and Krunal Pandya.
The bowling squad also looks sorted out with the likes of Mark Wood, Avesh Khan, Dushmantha Chameera and Ankit Rajpoot. Their spin bowling division is headed by Shahbaz Nadeem, Bishnoi, Hooda and Krunal. They also bought the leg spinner Karn Sharma.
KL Rahul’s captaincy will be in the spotlight after a couple of years of disappointing spells at Punjab Kings. It will be interesting to see how Rahul and mentor Gambhir, who is expected to have a big say, work together and lead the team to success.
LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS SQUAD – IPL 2022
Retained Players: KL Rahul, Ravi Bishnoi and Marcus Stoinis.
Player auctioned: Quinton de Kock, Manish Pandey, Jason Holder, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Mark Wood, Avesh Khan, Ankit Rajpoot, K. Gowtham, Dushmanta Chameera, Shahbaz Nadeem, Manan Vohra, Mohsin Khan, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Karan Sharma, Evin Lewis, Mayank Yadav.
