Although Sanjiv Goenka considers KL Rahul to be family, he would not say if the Indian wicketkeeper-batsman will be retained for the following three seasons. “As far as I am concerned, I treat him as part of my family. He knows that too,” Goenka on Wednesday.

Rahul led the Lucknow Super Giants for three seasons, but since their public talk following a game against Sunrisers Hyderabad in which LSG was destroyed by ten wickets, their equation has been the focus of much controversy. Rahul recently met Mr. Goenka in Kolkata. pictures of which were circulated all over Social Media.

“He (Rahul) has been there since the inception of Lucknow Super Gants. He’s led us for three years. I have gone on record before and I have no hesitation in saying this again that he wanted to win. KL is an important part of the Super Giants family. As far as retention is concerned, I don’t know. It’s not something I’m going to discuss now. That has to be confidential. There are three months to decide on this.”

Following a recent meeting with the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise owners, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is anticipated to release a retention policy. On being asked whether LSG has an opinion about this matter, Goenka declined to clarify the position of the team.

“We don’t even know what is going to be the retention policy of the BCCI. Let the BCCI announce the policy. Then we will have three months to decide. It’s too early to take a call on anything like that.” He, however, made it clear that he is for the continuation of the mega-auction. “Yes, it should be there.”

LSG has signed the former Indian legend, left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan as a mentor to the side. Speaking about his role, Goenka said,  “We are looking to get into a winning habit, making winning a habit. For Zaheer, right through his playing career and then in his non-playing career, winning has been a way of life for him. That is what we want and that is what we hope to get. So when I realized he was no longer with Mumbai Indians, I approached him. It is as simple as that.”

In 2022, Goenka paid INR 7090 crore to acquire the franchise, making LSG the most expensive team in the IPL. He has no regrets that he made such a huge investment. “I’m very happy, I’m delighted and I’m excited. I see the valuations going up. We need to improve our performance.”

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