Lucknow Super Giants owner Sanjiv Goenka was seen scolding LSG captain KL Rahul after their embarrassing 10-wicket loss against Sunrisers Hyderabad in match 57 of the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, on May 8. This incident sparked a major controversy, people from the cricket fraternity and fans criticised Goenka's approach. Now, Rahul's teammate Mohammed Shami has also opened up on the incident and said it is a ‘matter of shame’.
Mohammed Shami on Sanjiv Goenka
Mohammed Shami was extremely unimpressed with the way Goenka treated Rahul in front of everyone. He said it is a matter of shame and should have done that in a private setting. He criticised his reaction and said it is not something to be proud of.
"Players have respect, and you are a respectful person, too, as you are an owner. Many people are watching you and learning from you. If these things happen in front of cameras… ye sharam ki baat hai. it’s a matter of shame," Shami said on Cricbuzz.
"If you have to do that, there are many different ways. You could’ve done the same thing in the dressing room or the hotel. It wasn’t necessary to do it on the field. Aise reaction dekar laal qile pe jhanda toh gaada nahi hai aapne (It isn’t as if you hoisted a flag at Red Fort by doing this)," he added.
KL Rahul to be sacked as captain
After LSG's big loss against SRH, there have been rumours that Lucknow might sack KL Rahul as captain. The buzz around this rumour only grew larger following the animated chat between Goenka and Rahul. However, a LSG source told Sports Tak that the franchise is not thinking about this decision.
“Why would we ask out captain to step down when there is no need to do so. We are focusing on our next game. There is not question of captaincy change at all. The teams that are placed at 10th and ninth position are not even thinkg about captaincy change then why should we? We still have a chance (to reach playoff) and are no.5 at the moment (on the points table). Any team may have a bad day or the captain but it does not mean there is a need of change in the leadership,” an LSG top source told Sports Tak on the condition of anonymity.
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