Aakash Chopra says LSG can release and buy back Rishabh Pant in IPL 2026 mini-auction

Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra believes Lucknow Super Giants can adopt the strategy of releasing their captain Rishabh Pant and buying him back in the IPL 2026 mini auction. Pant was bagged for a whopping amount of INR 27 crore in the mega auction and Chopra reckons LSG can get the wicket-keeper for INR 14-15 crore, which would help them buy other players.

However, the renowned commentator noted that the connection could be lost if LSG adopts this auction tactic. Meanwhile, Pant had a horrid season for LSG as he scored 269 runs in 13 innings at an average of 24.45 and a strike rate of 133.16 while leading the franchise.

“What about Rishabh Pant? If you release Rishabh Pant, you will sit with ₹60-65 crore in the auction. You could be the next Punjab Kings. You will have the money to buy everyone. You can go with that thought process. You can also consider releasing Rishabh Pant at ₹27 crore and buying him back for ₹14-15 crore,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.

“That is also a possibility, because, at this point in time, except for KKR, no one else is looking for a captain. They (KKR) might not go towards Rishabh Pant, although they should. You can release Rishabh and buy him back, but the only problem is that the connection is lost. The connection becomes a transactional relationship,” he added.

The former Delhi cricketer reckons LSG can have a massive auction if they decide to release their captain.

“The call would not be make or break because even if you release Akash Deep, David Miller, Mayank Yadav and Ravi Bishnoi, you will have so much money, plus the incremental value you get, that you will have a good auction. If you release Rishabh Pant, you will have a massive auction. Then no one will be able to outbid you, from any perspective,” he said.

However, Chopra reckons LSG would decide to retain Rishabh Pant after the left-hander scored a brilliant century in the last league phase against RCB.

“I don’t think they will let him go because you don’t get a captain that easily, although they had a very ordinary season, even from the captaincy point of view. However, eventually he made the Spidey jump and showed what he is capable of. So they might still retain him,” Chopra observed.

LSG could not qualify for the playoffs after managing six wins and eight losses in 14 games and finished in seventh place in the standings.