In essence, the Lucknow Super Giants went out in style by signing Rishabh Pant for ₹27 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 season. Clearly, the franchise was certain that Rishabh Pant could help establish their brand identity, thereby guiding them to an elusive IPL title. However, it hasn’t really panned out as planned. Rishabh Pant’s association with the Lucknow Super Giants team has been anything but smooth, with average performances, leadership questions, and the continuous pressure of delivering results. Despite forming a competitive side around the player over two seasons, LSG haven’t had much luck. 5 reasons why LSG should consider parting ways with Rishabh Pant prior to IPL 2027 ₹27 Crore Price Tag Has Started to Feel Like a Weight Pant turned out to be the most expensive player in IPL history after LSG signed him at ₹27 crore. Naturally, a lot was expected in return. But batting-wise, the yield has been far from proportional to the cost. In IPL 2025, Pant scored 269 runs across 14 matches at an average of 24.45 and strike rate of 133. An unbeaten century against Royal Challengers Bengaluru definitely helped his cause here. IPL 2026 followed suit. In 11 games, he scored 251 runs with an average of 27.89 and just one fifty. Considering how highly-paid he is, LSG would surely be expecting more such innings from him. Moreover, it also impacts the balance within the team, considering the huge amount spent on him alone. Captaincy Has Been a Headache for the Team Pant’s leadership has taken a beating, to be fair, over these last two seasons. A lot of his batting and bowling choices have confused fans and experts, and in tight games, LSG often looked jittery, like they were trying to figure things out mid-overs. This season, one big talking point was his choice to back Aiden Markram in the final over, instead of sticking with a more usual bowling option when Chennai Super Kings were in the chase. Also, the batting order kept flipping too much. Players were shuffled regularly, and multiple combinations just did not click. Under Pant, LSG finished seventh in IPL 2025 with only six wins from 14 matches. In IPL 2026, it went even more downhill, with at one stage only three wins from 11 games. Also Read | Watch: Axar Patel and DC stars hilariously tease frustrated Arshdeep after PBKS defeat Pant Has Lost the Fearless T20 Edge Pant used to be seen as one of India’s most lethal T20 batters. Early in his IPL journey, he played with zero fear, attacking bowlers almost from ball one. That aggressive brand of batting was at its peak in 2018. That IPL season is still often mentioned because he scored 600+ runs and at a strike rate above 170. But gradually, that intent kind of faded away. Now, Pant looks unsure about when to go hard and when to settle. Even as captain, he seems to carry extra pressure, especially when he is batting. In T20I cricket too, his numbers have stayed fairly average for a player known for explosive hitting. His strike rate in international T20s has hovered near 127, even after many years of playing at that level. The “old Pant” who could flip a match in just a few overs, hasn’t really shown up much during his time with LSG. Confusion Around Batting Role Another major problem has been Pant’s unclear batting position. At different moments, he has opened the innings, gone at number three, and also tried the middle order space. These repeated changes have affected the rest of the lineup too. To accommodate Pant in the top order, players such as Markram and Nicholas Pooran had to shift away from where they normally feel comfortable. That, in turn, weakened the middle order in a big way. LSG even tested Ayush Badoni as an opener in some games, but the idea didn’t really work out. In T20, having a stable batting order matters a lot, and LSG could not lock in that kind of consistency under Pant. LSG Already Have Better Captaincy Options Anyway If LSG decide to release Pant, they are not going into it empty handed, because they already have experienced leaders within the squad. Mitchell Marsh currently captains Australia in T20 cricket, and he has been one of LSG’s more consistent performers across the last couple of seasons. Markram is another solid option. He has led South Africa deep in ICC competitions, and he also guided Sunrisers Eastern Cape to SA20 titles. Pooran too has plenty of experience as a T20 captain, with success across different franchise leagues worldwide. All three bring leadership experience plus real proof in T20 cricket.So LSG might feel they don’t have to keep Pant as captain if results don’t improve quickly. For now, Pant still remains one of the biggest names in Indian cricket. But unless his performances rise fast, Lucknow Super Giants could genuinely think about making a major change before IPL 2027.