Blessed to have a captain like KL Rahul at LSG: Justin Langer

Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) have played remarkable cricket in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and are one to have qualified for the play-offs in both 2022 and 2023 under the leadership of KL Rahul. However, ahead of IPL 2024, the team management decided to shake things up, as Justin Langer replaced Andy Flower as the head coach while their mentor Gautam Gambhir joined Kolkata Knight Riders.

Upon joining LSG, Langer stated that he is blessed to have a captain like KL Rahul in the team. He lauded the Mangalore-born cricketer and described him as a “beautiful, elegant-looking player”. He mentioned that Rahul has the experience and is good against both spin and pace, which makes him a threat to the opposition.

“When I was an Australian coach, and we had a series against India, I never used to relax until Virat Kohli and KL Rahul got out. Because he is (Rahul) so dangerous player, and he is such a beautiful, elegant looking player. He has experience. He can play to both sides of the ground. He plays spin and quick bowling well. I feel really grateful, and I feel blessed to have a captain like KL Rahul. I am excited about that (teaming with KL Rahul),” Langer said in a video released by LSG.

Notably, Rahul had a terrific year with the bat in 2023. He has played 30 international matches this year and scored 1,203 runs. The stumper-batter suffered an unfortunate hamstring injury during IPL 2023 and was ruled out of the tournament. However, he regained fitness and returned for the 2023 Asia Cup as well as the ODI World Cup at home.