Eden diary: Shadows of IPL loom as Pant looks certain to stay LSG captain

It may be only mid-November, but the cash-rich IPL has already cast a shadow on Indian cricket – so what if the national team knuckled down for an important Test series against South Africa at the city. A meeting convened by industrial baron Sanjeev Goenka, the owner of Lucknow Super Giants, to fine-tune their retention strategy with Rishabh Pant in attendance just a day before the Test caught many talking.

The presence of Pant, who staged a comeback to international cricket after almost 100 days due to a toe injury sustained during the Test series in England, was a clear indication that the keeper-batter will remain the captain for the 2026 season.  A photo released by Goenka on his X handle had a board room look with his son Saswat, head coach Justin Langer, new bowling coach Bharat Arun and Tom Moody, their newly appointed Global Director of Cricket posing for a photo op.

‘’IPL retention talks for @LucknowIPL are underway. Delighted to have @TomMoodyCricket on board, bringing immense experience and strategic insight. Great discussion with @RishabhPant17, Justin Langer, and Bharat Arun as we plan for the season ahead,’’ Goenka posted on social media.

The Lucknow-based franchise, who made their IPL debut in 2022 with a runners-up finish, finished a dismal seventh earlier this year while captain Pant endured a miserable season with the bat – with many attributing it to the pressure of having the tag of highest paid player ever at Rs 27 crores in last mega auction. There was some buzz about the future of Pant as captain – what with the management already parting ways with Zaheer Khan, last year’s mentor.

The deadline for retention and release of players for IPL 2026 ending at 3 pm IST on Saturday (15 November) while the trading window will continue till a week before the auction in Abu Dhabi on 16 December. A number of high profile trades have already taken place  - with the most talked about of them being Chennai Super Kings securing Indian wicketkeeper-batter Sanju Samson from Rajasthan Royals, trading in the allrounder pair of Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran.

 Then on Thursday, five-time champions Mumbai Indians roped in the seasoned allrounder Shardul Thakur and Sherfane Rutherford in all-cash deals with LSG for Rs 2 crore and Gujarat Titans (GT) for INR 2.60 crore, respectively. In another trade, the Super Giants got Arjun Tendulkar at his base price of Rs 30 lakh from MI.

 The franchises have also started re-jigging their support staff with Kolkata Knight Riders making two quick announcements – former Australian allrounder Shane Watson as assistant coach and Tim Southee as bowling coach.

 The tentative window for IPL 2026 is 15 March to 31 May.