'If we have team success, everyone will be rewarded' - Justin Langer notes importance of IPL performances for T20 World Cup selection

Justin Langer, Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) head coach, outlined the importance of the forthcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) for players vying to get a spot in the much-awaited 2024 ICC T20 World Cup. The marquee event is scheduled to commence on June 2 and will be co-hosted by the United States of America and the West Indies. 

Ahead of the 17th edition of the IPL, Langer stated that the players will be rewarded if the team succeeds. He added that there are chances for the players to secure their spot in the T20 World Cup and they should keep that in mind when they perform for Lucknow.

"If we have team success, everyone will be rewarded. That'll be the message for all the players, including Bishi (Ravi Bishnoi) and KL (Rahul), and there's a few others who will be vying for T20 World Cup spots. That's all part of the game we play. The more they concentrate on playing well for Lucknow, the more their chances of being selected will increase," Langer was quoted as saying by ICC.

Also read: 'He'll be around for the first time' - Justin Langer on KL Rahul's availability ahead of IPL 2024

Langer went on to speak about LSG skipper KL Rahul who is set to return to the field after being sidelined since the opening match of the recently concluded Test series against England owing to a quadriceps tendon injury. The wicketkeeper-batter has been deemed fit and hitting lots of balls in the nets, according to the coach.

“Everyone's looking forward to seeing him (KL Rahul). We know he has worked very hard to tick off all his return-to-play protocols. He's worked very hard. He's been practicing, he's been hitting lots of balls. He's hopefully ready to go. It's going to be nice to have the captain with us," he said on Rahul.

It's nice to have so much talent in our squad: Langer

Langer further spoke about KL Rahul's position in LSG's playing XI for the upcoming IPL. The 31-year-old batter has usually played as an opener in the white-ball format. However, he has found success while batting down the order, partiularly in the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup where he amassed 452 in 11 matches, averaging 75.33.

Also read: IPL 2024: David Willey to miss initial matches for LSG due to personal reasons

"I haven't been coaching for two years since I left the Australian cricket team, and for two years I've been sleeping very well at night. Now, it's hard to sleep at night because it's very hard to fit so much talent into 11 positions. It's a good problem to have. It's a sweet problem, but we'll work it out. It's nice to have so much talent in our squad.

"My view - and I've said this for probably 25 years - (is that) if the team does well, then everyone gets rewarded. And therefore, from KL's point of view, if he captains the Lucknow Super Giants to an IPL victory, it means he would've played well himself and he would've captained very well, and he would've wicket-kept very well," he concluded.