Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel and K.L. Rahul during a practice session on the eve of their IPL T20 match against LSG at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on March 31, 2026.
| Photo Credit: R.V. Moorthy
The buzz around the rebranded Lucknow Super Giants team is high ahead of the new Indian Premier League season. The Shaheed Path highway here, which leads into the city from the airport, is dotted with flags and cutouts of the host side’s players on the eve of their campaign opener against Delhi Capitals at the Ekana Cricket Ground on Wednesday.
Last year’s dark blue and orange have made way for navy blue and red as the Super Giants hope that a change in jersey colours, along with a new logo, will help them turn over a new leaf. However, with a largely intact batting core and an injury-prone seam attack, helmed by the out-of-favour veteran Mohammed Shami, will it be a case of “The more things change, the more they stay the same?”
Skipper Rishabh Pant, who has been sidelined from India’s white-ball teams, will have a point to prove. He capped off his underwhelming IPL season last year with a scintillating unbeaten 118 at No. 3, a position he slotted in at only once before in the campaign. The maverick wicketkeeper-batter’s spot in a power-packed top four, comprising Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram and Nicholas Pooran, will be crucial.
Capitals, Pant’s former team, don’t enjoy the same abundance at the top of the batting tree. They tried seven different opening combinations last year and ended the season with the lowest first-wicket average (21.78). The addition of Sri Lanka opener Pathum Nissanka, along with K.L. Rahul, could address that concern. On the bowling front, Mitchell Starc’s absence could be ridden out by Jammu and Kashmir pace sensation Auqib Nabi.
LSG and DC fell short of a playoff berth last year despite promising starts to their campaigns. They will hope history doesn’t repeat as they begin another pursuit of a maiden title.
Published – March 31, 2026 08:06 pm IST
