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Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) skipper KL Rahul found himself at the receiving end of an animated discussion with franchise's owner Sanjiv Goenka near the LSG dugout after his team's humiliating defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in an unbelievable run-chase pulled off by Hyderabad openers Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head.
Chasing LSG's below-par 165 for 4, Hyderabad openers launched an almost unreal attack on Lucknow bowlers to reach the target in a mere 9.4 overs and register a massive 10-wicket win. Hitting 14 sixes and 16 fours collectively, Head and Abhihsek smashed 89* off just 30 balls and 75* off only 28 balls, respectively.
Before being clueless against SRH's attack as a captain, Rahul had a forgettable outing as a batsman, scoring 29 off 33 balls. It was only because of Nicholas Pooran's 48* off 26 balls and Ayush Badoni's 55* off 30 that LSG could put up a competitive total on the board.
The defeat pushed LSG down to number six on the points table after their sixth defeat in 12 matches, thereby making the team's task of qualifying for the playoffs tougher. SRH moved up to number three with their seventh win in 12 matches.
As the footage of Goenka talking to Rahul was being aired on live broadcast, the commentators said: \"You always feel these conversations should always be behind closed doors. There are so many cameras that miss nothing, and KL Rahul is not going to go at press conferences and various other things and probably potentially explain what is being discussed there. He has done well here to keep his cool.\"
The incident has sparked a debate on social media, with some fans slamming Goenka's behavior as \"disgusting\" and \"unprofessional\", while others defended the owner's right to express his disappointment.
It remains to be seen what impact the incident will have on Rahul's captaincy and LSG's chances of making the playoffs.