KL Rahul's Remark on Owners with Business Background: A Sly Dig at Sanjiv Goenka?

India's wicketkeeper-batsman, KL Rahul, took a proactive approach in resolving any lingering issues with Lucknow Super Giants owner, Sanjiv Goenka. The meeting took place on Monday at Goenka's office on Judges Court Road, Alipore, Kolkata. During the meeting, Rahul expressed his desire to be retained by the franchise for the upcoming season. However, despite the meeting, LSG has not given Rahul any assurance as the rules of retention for the 2025 mega auction are yet to be revealed by the IPL.

Last season, a video from the LSG dugout created quite a sensation after Goenka was seen in an animated discussion with captain Rahul after the side incurred a heavy defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The cricketing fraternity severely criticised the LSG owner for his act, as the video sparked speculations about Rahul's future in the franchise. However, it was later called a "frank discussion between owner and skipper" as Goenka hosted Rahul for dinner.

Despite Goenka's gesture to clarify that all is good in the LSG franchise, speculations remained rife post IPL 2024 that Rahul might opt to leave the team, with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, his former franchise, reportedly emerging as a top name to acquire the India batter.

Amid the talk around his retention, Rahul, dropped, a comment in his recent interaction on Nikhil Kamat's podcast, where he talked about the overreliance on data and how "owners coming from a business background" tend to accept that research. However, Rahul reckons that numbers don't always guarantee a win. But was it a sly dig at entrepreneur Goenka, founder and chairman of RPSG Group?

“Data is used a lot in cricket today. You can easily pick the player who scores the most runs during a certain phase in the game, and people have done that. We have watched the IPL and see how the league works and see the owners coming from a business background, where everything works on data. They research and pick the team, but it doesn't guarantee that you will win every game. You might get the Best player based on Data, but they might have a horrible year. Every player can have bad day in Sports,” he said.

It is unlikely that Rahul took an aim at Goenka in his remark, with his intention being highlight the over use of data in IPL, or cricket overall, which, he feels, often tends to not show the larger picture.

Will LSG retain KL Rahul?

According to a report in the PTI, Goenka did not commit to Rahul over his retention talk, with BCCI yet to clarify the rules for the upcoming auction.

"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.

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