Lucknow, March 17 (IANS) Ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) team met Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath on Monday. The meeting, attended by team owner Sanjiv Goenka and captain Rishabh Pant, was a courtesy visit where the Chief Minister extended his best wishes for the upcoming IPL season. During the meeting, CM Yogi Adityanath praised Lucknow Super Giants’ past performances, highlighting the team’s talent, discipline, and sportsmanship. He expressed confidence that the players would give their best and strive to lift the IPL 2025 trophy. “Lucknow Super Giants have showcased remarkable performances in previous seasons. This team represents dedication, discipline, and the true spirit of the game. I am hopeful that this season, too, the players will demonstrate their skills and make the state proud,” the Chief Minister said. Several key players, coaches, and management officials were present at the meeting, including Rishabh Pant (Captain), Aryan Juyal, Himmat Singh, Abdul Samad, other players and coaching staff. LSG are set to play their first match of IPL 2025 season against Delhi Capitals, a team which Pant captained previously, on March 24 at the ACAVDCA Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam. LSG reached the playoffs of the IPL 2022 and 2023 seasons, before exiting in the Eliminator twice. In IPL 2024, LSG finished at seventh place in the points table. Pant, the left-handed wicketkeeper-batter, became the most expensive player in IPL’s history when LSG acquired him for Rs 27 crore at the mega auction last year. He will now be LSG’s fourth captain in their history of playing in the IPL after KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran and Krunal Pandya. This will be the second IPL team Pant will be captaining after leading Delhi Capitals (DC). Pant had been DC’s captain from 2021 to 2024 editions of the IPL, barring the 2023 season, which he missed due to recovery from various injuries sustained in a car accident in December 2022.