Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) did not execute their plans properly in their first match of the IPL 2026 season as they suffered a defeat against Delhi Capitals (DC) at the Ekana Stadium. LSG could only score a total of 141 runs before losing their last wicket.
Before the first ball of the match when the opener Lucknow Super Giants As soon as they entered the ground, fans braced themselves to watch the fireworks as team captain Rishabh Pant promoted himself as the opening batsman along with Mitchell Marsh.
Should LSG demote Rishabh Pant in their batting order?
using the Rishabh Pant It was a bold decision by the team management to break the proven duo of Marsh and Aiden Markram as opening batsmen. Last season, the opening pair of Marsh and Markram was one of the main driving forces for the team. The LSG experiment failed last night against Delhi Capitals, as Pant was out after scoring just 7 runs due to an unfortunate runout.
It is uncertain whether Pant will play as an opening batsman in the upcoming matches. After the match, the keeper-batsman himself mentioned that now it is a 50-50 chance. Former India cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin urged the LSG team management to play Rishabh Pant as an opener not for one or two matches but for the entire season as the southpaw can do some very explosive things in the batting order.
Also Read: Rishabh Pant almost injures Sameer Rizvi during LSG vs DC IPL 2026 clash, video goes viral
Ravichandran Ashwin requested LSG
Ashwin said that if Pant comes to bat as a middle-order batsman, he may have to struggle a lot because the opposing teams will have strategies to stop him. But if he continues to play as an opener, the team will have the opportunity to make maximum use of the power play.
“The way Rishabh Pant got out was very unfortunate and the way he talked after the match was even more unfortunate. He was asked whether he would open the innings, and he replied 50-50. I request you with folded hands, please open in every match. Justin Langer, or whoever is in charge of the LSG team management, should go and tell Rishabh Pant to go out there and play freely in the powerplay. Go and play the full 14 games as an opener,” the former cricketer said on his YouTube channel.
He further added to cement his point, “If he comes to bat after the power play, the bowlers have a strategy to stop him. So, I think he should open the batting for himself and also for LSG.”
It is a 50-50 chance for Pant
According to the statistics, Pant has opened the innings in 23 T20 matches, where his strike rate is 159 with one century and five half-centuries. Due to the unfortunate run out, after which LSG suffered a collapse and never recovered from the initial shock, they could have changed their mind and sent their captain back into the middle order.
“It’s a 50-50 call,” Pant said about the possibility of seeing him open in the next match for Lucknow Super Giants.
Read More: Former LSG coach Yuvraj Singh removed from post gives honest verdict on Rishabh Pant’s T20 game
