Fans not impressed as Lucknow owner publicly 'pulls up' captain KL Rahul after unreal IPL loss

UNREAL scenes prevailed both during and after the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday (8). First of all, Hyderabad exhibited an out-of-the-world show with their bat, overhauling LSG's hard-earned total of 165 with all wickets and more than 10 overs to spare, leaving the opponent captain "at a loss for words".

And then came the second part of the story, a more controversial one. As the players dispersed after the game got over, LSG captain KL Rahul, also his side's wicket-keeper, met franchise owner Sanjiv Goenka who seemed to be displeased with his team's meek surrender and engaged in an animated discussion with the former. The businessman was visibly upset, his body language suggested so as he spoke with exaggerated hand movements while Rahul stood composed.

While the defeat was the second successive heavy one for Lucknow who lost to Kolkata Knight Riders by 98 runs in the previous game and the two losses now leave them in a serious risk of missing the playoffs, not many were impressed with the animated talk of Goenka.

Read: Kolkata thrash Lucknow to clinch IPL top spot

Former play Graeme Smith and coach Mike Hesson, both of whom have been associated with the IPL in the past, felt the discussions should have happened behind closed doors and not in the public even as they acknowledged that the drubbing was special.

The fans also said that the owner could have waited for the players to return to the dressing room for a private conversation. Many also urged Rahul, who will complete a decade in international cricket in December this year, to leave Lucknow after the alleged treatment. #CometoRCB was also trending on X. Rahul originally hails from Bengaluru in the southern state of Karnataka.

Read: Hyderabad bulldoze Lucknow by 10 wickets to enter top 3

Here are some posts that the fans posted on X after the Goenka-Rahul episode:

Rahul himself failed to score quickly in the match, managing only 29 off 33 balls. However, he has been his side's top scorer this year, gathering 460 runs in 12 outings with three fifties but it is his strike rate of just over 136 that has come under the scanner.

Lucknow have made the playoffs under Rahul's captaincy in both the seasons they have played after making their debut in 2022. This year, they have to win big in two of their remaining games and pray for other match results to go in their favour.