Former India’s Pacer Zaheer Khan has allegedly stepped into his role as a patron of the Lucknow Super Veterans (LSG) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026). According to a report by ESPN Cricinfo, the former cricketer shared his decision on Thursday 18 September with the team owned by Sanjeev Goenka.
Zaheer joined Lucknow super veterans as a patron before IPL 2025. He replaced Gautam Gambhir, who left the same role with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) before IPL 2024. Gamhir KKR was part of assistant employees, when he followed the IPL title under Sheris Years.
Zaheer Khan Parts with Lucknow Super Giants ahead of IPL 2026
According to ESPN Cricinfo, Zaheer Khan participated in a manner with Lucknow super veterans due to the difference in sight with head coach Justin Langer and team owner Sanjeev Goenka. Disagreement and an atmosphere of a stressful dressing room forced him to leave during the 2025 season.
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,The primary reason for leaving Zaheer is that his vision for the franchise did not align with head coach Justin Langer and Team owner Sanjeev Goenka, “read the report.
Khan signed a two -year contract with Lucknow super veterans in August 2024, scouting, strategy and overall team scheme. Before joining LSG, he worked with Mumbai Indians (MI) from 2018 to 2022.
LSG reached the playoffs in its first two sessions (2022 and 2023), but the franchise struggled to maintain the same level of success in later years.
Zaheer Khan maintains a strong relationship with Captain Rishabh Pant
The report said the 46 -year -old has a good relationship with the coaching staff and the owner with Lucknow super legendary captain Rishabh Pant. However, the team’s poor performance during the late IPL 2025 influenced his decision to step down.
The report said, “When Zaheer’s relationship with Captain Rishabh Pant was strong, he was influenced by the idea process that played a role in LSG, which was falling down the points table in the second part of IPL 2025,” the report said.
LSG, led by Rishabh Pant, won six of his 14 league-stage matches in IPL 2025, finished seventh with 12 points. In particular, he won five of his first eight matches, but managed only one win in his last six fixtures. The team registered only two out of eight matches at Ekna Stadium in Lucknow.
Zaheer Khan ordered Rishabh Pant in IPL 2025
Lucknow Super Veterans made headlines in the IPL mega auction by signing Rishabh pants for a record of Rs 27 crore. Pant became the most expensive player in IPL history. Zaheer Khan supported a strategy to strengthen the team and ensure long -term development.
There was a discussion about pants about the batting opening, but Zaheer advised him to go down the order. Michelle Marsh and Eden Markram opened the innings for super veterans, while Nicholas Goran batted at number 3.
The decision proved effective as Marsh scored an average of 48.23 runs with a strike rate of 163.70. Gorn scored 524 runs at a strike rate of 196.25, while Markram scored 445 runs at a strike rate of 148.82.
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