Rishabh Pant is all set to enter the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League. Like the team, the captain has also updated himself before IPL 2026. Pant is now very lean, fast and absolutely fit to play.
As soon as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) shared a video of their newly formed team with captain Rishabh Pant in the lead role, it attracted a lot of attention from cricket fans on social media platforms. Like Rohit Sharma, who had lost a lot of weight, Pant is also looking the same now.
Rishabh Pant lost a lot of weight
After tough training sessions, when the media asked him how much weight he had lost, the keeper-batsman replied (as quoted by the Indian Express), “Woh mat poochiye (don’t ask this).”
Thanks to former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh, who helped the swashbuckling batsman come out of his injury-hit situation again. According to a report in ESPNcricinfo, Pant sought help from Yuvraj to improve his batting skills. The two collaborated in Mumbai last week.
A few months ago, when the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) was looking for a keeper-batsman for the white-ball format ahead of the T20 World Cup 2026, Pant suddenly got injured and was out of selection contention. At that time Jitesh Sharma was also not available for selection. Later, it was Ishant Kishan who made it to the final and made his return to the international camp to play the showcase tournament.
Both Rishabh Pant and LSG will have to prove their strength.
Rishabh Pant will have to prove himself again. India’s keeper-batsmen Sanju Samson and Ishan Kishan performed well in the T20 World Cup 2026 to help the team defend the title. If Rishabh has to make a strong case for selection in the white-ball team, he will have to perform brilliantly in the IPL 2026 season.
Like the captain, team Lucknow Super Giants will also have to do the same to at least reach the playoffs. Last season, they finished seventh in the points table of ten teams. LSG invest heavily in Rishabh Pant; Now, it’s time for the cricketer to pay back the franchise.
| Rishabh Pant – IPL 2025 Batting Stats | ||||||||||||
| Team | mat | Inn | No | it goes | HS | average | BF | sr | 100s | 50’s | 4s | 6s |
| lsg | 14 | 13 | 2 | 269 | 118* | 24.45 | 202 | 133.16 | 1 | 1 | 23 | 16 |
Lucknow Super Giants’ first match of IPL 2026 will be against Delhi Capitals.
“A lot of the guys are from last year. There are definitely some new faces. Everyone is welcome. Let’s try to build relationships. If we don’t talk about cricket, we’re not going to improve. As a people, let’s take whatever we can from all these gentlemen and try to build something for this season, we’re not going to improve, we’re not going to improve,” Pant told members of the LSG squad gathered for preparations in Chennai.
LSG hopes to have its full squad in training facilities by March 16. The preparatory camps are meant to create a bond between the players and build an initial foundation, which can later help the team build momentum in the tournament. LSG will start their campaign on April 1 against Delhi Capitals at their home ground Ekana Stadium.
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