Industrialist Sanjiv Goenka, owner of the Lucknow Super Giants, has spoken about social media scrutiny and viral clips of his on-field conversations with Rishabh Pant, saying he has often become a “convenient punching bag.”
In an exclusive interview with NDTV's CEO and Editor-in-Chief Rahul Kanwal in 'Walk The Talk', Goenka said his communication style — marked by expressive hand gestures — is frequently misread with regard to intent.
He also clarified that a widely circulated interaction with Rishabh Pant was not a “daat” (scolding), adding that the moment was misread due to misunderstandings of his natural way of speaking.
"Look, with a player like Rishabh, there is never a 'daat' (scolding) situation," Goenka, the principal owner of cricket team Lucknow Super Giants, which plays in the IPL (Indian Premier League) said.
He further stated that his body language and his public presence are used to frame him in a controversial light in order to garner virality and user engagement.
"But on social media, even if Sanjiv Goenka moves his hands a certain way, it becomes breaking news. I've become a very convenient punching bag. If you run a headline saying 'Sanjiv Goenka scolds his player,' you get instant views," Goenka stated.
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He also remarked that he is learning to "keep his hands behind his back" while speaking so that he is not further misninterpreted.
Goenka was also in the eye of a media storm in 2024 when he was spotted having an animated conversation with Lucknow Super Giants' Captain KL Rahul after the team had lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad.
"People need to understand that one incident doesn't define a person. We make mistakes, we learn, and we ensure we don't repeat them. The dressing room is happy, and the environment is positive; these outside narratives aren't actual issues," he said.
The RPSG Group Chairman also addressed claims that he was interfering with his team, by stating that he does not instruct or advise them on how they should play the game and that he utilises a "massive team of experts" who take care of the technical aspects of the game.
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Meanwhile, speaking about the ongoing US-Israeli attack on Iran, Goenka said that there is some impact and people are wanting to conserve resources and capital, adding, "But as far as we are concerned, we realise 2-3 months will be challenging"
Stating that they have one company where fuel is an important raw material and therefore it's a huge impact, Goenka addedm "Frankly there's also confidence that somebody like Narendra Modi, or Narendra Modi specifically, leads us."
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