I have had zero stress from the Goenka family: LSG head coach Justin Langer

Justin Langer spoke about him becoming LSG's coach and his relationship with the owners of the Lucknow-based franchise recently. The Australian opened up on a meeting he had with Sanjiv Goenka, which led to him changing his decision on not becoming the LSG head coach.

Langer claimed that he got a text message from LSG's Vinay Chopra who consulted him for the role of the head coach when he was in London. The former Australian opener claimed to have received such offers about 15 times after things did not go well with him and Cricket Australia. Langer said it was very easy for him to say 'No'.

"I'm in London for the World Cricket Committee, and I get this text message, 'Hi, I'm Vinay Chopra from LSG, we're wondering if you are interested in being our coach next year', and I'd been asked 15 times whether I wanted to be a head coach between finishing from Australia till then. It was the easiest no in my life," Langer said in a podcast named 'Beyond 23 Cricket Podcast'.

The former opener revealed he got to know that Mr. Goenka was in London, through Vinay, who asked him to have a coffee with the LSG owner. Langer claimed Goenka's hotel was about 150 meters away from a mentoring session he was a part of. The Aussie claimed to have had a nice conversation with him and added Goenka was a successful businessman.

"By absolute fluke, Mr. Goenka, the owner, he is in London as well. So, the guy texts me, 'How about you just have a coffee with him?' I was doing a mentoring session with a business guy in London that morning, only 150 metres away from the hotel that he was staying in. So, I sit with Mr. Goenka, and we have this nice conversation. He was calm, nice, and he is a very successful businessman," Langer added.

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You cannot classify yourself as a great coach until you win the IPL: Goenka to Langer

The southpaw claimed to have gotten a reality check from the LSG owner. The LSG head coach said Goenka praised him for his coaching career till that point, and added one might not be considered great till they help a team win an IPL title.

"The last words he said to me were, 'Justin, I know you have had a very successful career, been a very good player, and you have had a very successful coaching career. But, let's face it, you cannot classify yourself as a great coach until you win the IPL," the Australian added.

He spoke about the perceptions media and fans have about Goenka regarding the conversations between him and KL Rahul during the IPL 2024. Unlike what's being portrayed, Langer said he has never forced anything in team selection or anything related to the franchise. Langer said he might never be able to say a bad word about the Goenka family.

"There are perceptions about Mr.Goenka and IPL owners, I hear they want to be involved in selection, and in my experience, it has been the opposite. I have had zero stress from the Goenka family. We have great respect, and so far it has been a nice partnership. I will never be able to say a bad word," Langer added.