Rishabh Pant and Justin Langer (ANI Photos) NEW DELHI: Lucknow Super Giants coach Justin Langer has given full backing to skipper Rishabh Pant despite yet another disappointment in IPL 2026, insisting the wicket-keeper batsman is “not far away” from rediscovering his best.LSG slumped to yet another defeat, against Mumbai Indians on Monday, leaving them rooted at the bottom of the table with just two wins from nine matches. Much of the scrutiny has focused on Pant’s form and his decision to mix up the batting order, but Langer offered a strong defense of both.
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IPL 2026: LSG’s Justin Langer explains where they lost vs KKRLanger revealed a behind-the-scenes look at Pant’s recent form, highlighting a stunning performance in training that convinced the team management of his readiness.“We played a practice game here two days ago and Rishi … maybe 95 off 40 or 30 balls – you just look at it and think, ‘Oh my God, that’s Rishabh Pant at his best’,” Langer said.“So he’s a very good player; we know that. We’ve seen him destroy teams at number five in Test cricket and today we felt… that he could be a good option for the team.”A “selfless” move for the teamPant’s decision to move up the order, allowing Nicholas Pooran to bat higher, raised eyebrows – but Langer described it as a selfless call purely in the interest of the team.“He unselfishly moved up the order to let Nicky P bat, whose batting was incredible,” explained Langer, referring to Pooran’s explosive 63 off 21 balls.Langer backed his captain’s leadership, adding: “As a captain in the IPL… you have to keep going forward. That’s all you can do and he’ll keep going forward and hopefully help us get some wins.”The coach also rejected suggestions that Pant’s record price tag was affecting his performances.“Honestly, I don’t think money has anything to do with it … management is a tough position, you have a lot of pressure on you and he knows that,” he said. “He works hard… and he’s not far.Pant admits that LSG has failedPant himself acknowledged that LSG lefties are running the table after a strong start.“Definitely the way we started I think we should have got more runs…we were 10-15 runs short because it was a 220-230 wicket,” he said.While Pant refused to blame the bowlers, he admitted that the team needed some luck to turn things around. “I think we need a bit of luck… and it will definitely require more effort from us.With their play-off hopes hanging in the balance, LSG will now be hoping that Pant’s training brilliance soon translates into match-winning results.
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