It was a wild night in the IPL when the Delhi Capitals found themselves in deep water at 65 for 5 while chasing a hefty total of 210 runs. At that point, anyone could have thought the Lucknow Super Giants were about to stroll to an easy victory. But the game took a surprising turn when Ashutosh Sharma stepped up in a big way, smashing a quick half-century, and Vipraj Nigam aligned with him to deliver a blistering 39 runs off just 15 balls. Thanks to their efforts, the Capitals pulled off a stunning win, clinching the match with three deliveries left.
For Rishabh Pant, the captain of LSG, it was a night to forget. His performance was under the microscope after he got out for a golden duck (that means he didn’t score at all) and faced criticism for some of his decisions. To top it off, he missed a chance to stump a batsman during the last over, which might have made a big difference in the outcome of the game.
Sanjiv Goenka having a chat with Rishabh Pant. pic.twitter.com/6H6WTCxoVc
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 24, 2025
After that nail-biter victory by the Capitals, a moment caught on camera went viral. It showed LSG owner Sanjiv Goenka chatting with Pant and their head coach, Justin Langer. People couldn’t help but remember a similar situation from last season when Goenka had a pretty intense conversation with the then-captain KL Rahul after a tough loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad. That heated moment led to a lot of controversy and eventually, the team parted ways with Rahul before the mega auction.
When it came time for that big auction, LSG wasn’t shy about spending money. They went all out to bring in Pant as their new captain, shelling out a whopping Rs 27 crore, which made him the most expensive player acquired in IPL auction history.
Can anyone tell me where Sanjiv Goenka would be thinking of Rishabh Pant?? pic.twitter.com/xs0rMxNGYq
— Gurlabh Singh (@Gurlabh91001251) March 25, 2025
In the post-match chat, Pant mentioned how luck was a factor in the game they lost. He reflected on a missed opportunity that could have led to a stumping off Mohit Sharma’s delivery. He acknowledged that in cricket, these things happen, and instead of dwelling on what went wrong, it’s better to focus on improving as a team. There was also a curious decision not to let Shardul Thakur bowl all of his four overs.
Thakur had just stepped in as a last-minute replacement for the injured Mohsin Khan and had actually taken two key wickets in his two-over spell, removing Jason Fraser-McGurk and Abishek Porel. It raised some eyebrows and left fans wondering why he wasn’t given more overs to make an impact.
