Wasim Jaffer opined that the Lucknow Super Giants' (LSG) owner, Sanjiv Goenka, could make wholesale changes to his side after back-to-back disappointing Indian Premier League (IPL) campaigns.
The former India opener said that Goenka seems like an owner who really wants to win the IPL trophy, and that is why he could opt for a squad revamp. Jaffer believes that it will be justified if he takes some ruthless decisions as the head coach, Justin Langer, has had three years in charge but failed to deliver,
despite having a star-studded support staff.
“Knowing LSG, not personally, but as much as I have seen from the outside, it definitely feels like there will be wholesale changes. Because Sanjiv Goenka ji wants that trophy very badly, so I think he will leave no stone unturned to get the job done. In my opinion, that is absolutely fair, because the coach (Justin Langer) also got three years, but he could not deliver. And there was a very high-profile support staff as well, so in the auction it felt like they were not able to build the team they actually wanted," Jaffer said in a video on his YouTube channel.
LSG finished seventh in IPL 2025 and would have hoped for a better campaign this year. However, things went from bad to worse as they had to settle for the last spot in the standings.
Wasim Jaffer criticises LSG management after dismal IPL campaign
Jaffer lashed out at the LSG think tank for dropping talented youngsters like Abdul Samad and Ayush Badoni midway through the campaign. He also mentioned how Nicholas Pooran and Aiden Markram were not given their suitable batting positions.
“The batting was fairly strong. You see, Abdul Samad played a good innings today. We were saying earlier as well that Samad was sitting out. Then why was Badoni being left out, who has been performing well for the last two or three years? Nicholas Pooran was used in different batting positions. Markram was also played lower down the order. So many things, I mean, off the top of my head, these are the things I remember," Jaffer said.
Jaffer slammed the LSG management for not picking a good quality spinner during the auction. The cricketer-turned-expert said that from whatever he has seen of Goenka on TV, the 65-year-old would come down hard after two forgettable seasons in a row.
“They did not even pick a proper quality spinner. With so many options available, mistakes were definitely made. And Sanjiv Goenka has trusted the guys to get the job done, but I thought that job was not done properly. So I feel, knowing him from whatever we see on TV, he will come down hard, and he should as well, because two consecutive years of very poor performances have happened. So I feel yes, you might see wholesale changes," he concluded
