KL Rahul’s purple patch in the previous 12 months has been an absolute spectacle. From falling out of favour for India’s premier test eleven to cementing his position as the primary opener and captaining the side in int’l test match, it has been a resurgence for the ages.

Every eyeball was on Kannur Lokesh Rahul as he came out to bat on January 3. Regardless, his maiden arrival at the crease as int’l captain turned out to be rather underwhelming. It was an anticlimax.

Lucknow franchise’s co-owner comments on KL Rahul

So, he accompanied his childhood best friend to the crease. The crowd also cheered him on. Nonetheless, when Rahul took his stance in front of the stumps, netizens noticed that his bat had no sponsor sticker.

It was hundred percent plain and lacked the customary Sanspareils Greenlands sticker. Even bowlers and unknown batsmen have a sponsor sticker on their bat-face nowadays. Therefore, fans were left surprised by a premier batter like KL Rahul lacking a stick sponsor.

One random twitterati pointed this out and soon, the information starting reaching a big audience. This also included Lucknow franchise’s co-owner Harsh Goenka, who shared an absurd and cryptic reply to it.
Here’s what he wrote: “Because he has a sponsor in the back of his bat.”

Now, a casual look over the matter makes it seem like an instance of Harsh Goenka being playful. But it may carry more significance, feel some fans.

Only a few weeks ago, Harsh Goenka and Sanjiv Goenka’s upcoming franchise were accused of “poaching” KL Rahul by his ex-team- Punjab Kings. In addition to that, several reports had emerged that claimed that RPSG Group offered KL Rahul 20 crore for leading their side in IPL 2021.

WATCH VIDEO: Umpire warns KL Rahul for pulling out at the last moment, batter apologizes

Thus, several twitter users started to link Harsh’s response to Rahul’s speculated move to RPSG-led Lucknow franchise that’ll participate in IPL 2022. One of them even stretched it to RPSG planning to be KL Rahul’s next bat sponsor. Some of those responses are attached below.