Ravichandran Ashwin criticized the under-performing Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) team after the conclusion of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The Rishabh Pant-led team finished at the bottom of the points table with four wins from 14 matches.
Ashwin said that the Lucknow-based franchise gave nicholas puran The Caribbean wicketkeeper-batsman featured in all 14 matches of the season despite struggling to score. The southpaw finished with only 234 runs, his least productive season in the cash-rich league since 2021. Ashwin said that there is no point in leaving out talented domestic players like Ayush Badoni, Mukul Chaudhary and Himmat Singh.
Ashwin said on his YouTube channel, “Nicholas Pooran could not stay on the ball throughout the season, yet he supported Nicholas Pooran again and again. Ayush Badoni was called to India, yet he had to stay out of many matches for LSG. They had to give him a chance for a long time. Then you sit Mukul Chaudhary as the next best finisher and play Himmat Singh.”
Ashwin believes that LSG missed a trick by not letting Rishabh Pant open the batting throughout the season. The former India spinner believes that playing at the top of the batting order would have helped the wicketkeeper to express himself.
He said, “If he had got Pant to open, he could have got the best out of him. If he had opened and scored 600 runs, he would have captained well and listened to the coaches instead of saying that he is going to take a lot of decisions. Once he played musical chairs with Pant, half of his tournament was over there.”
Pant had his worst season with the bat, scoring just 312 runs in 14 matches at an average of 28.36 and a strike rate of 138.05. He recorded just one half-century in the season.
“There is absolutely no justification for Avesh Khan playing Akash Singh” – R Ashwin on LSG's bowling attack
Ashwin also pointed out some of the major mistakes made by the LSG management while choosing the bowling combination during the season. He said that playing Avesh Khan ahead of Akash Singh was not a right step.
“His usage of Digvesh Rathi was poor, and he didn't know who to play between him and M Siddharth. Shami started well, but they sat him. Avesh Khan played games he shouldn't have played. Playing Avesh Khan over Akash Singh can't be justified at all. Everything has fallen apart for him, and it's hard to see where he'll reset,” Ashwin said (via the above source).
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