LSG plan South Africa training stint for domestic pacers ahead of IPL 2026 season: Report

After finishing seventh in the IPL 2025 season, Lucknow Super Giants have already begun laying the groundwork for the upcoming season, with the franchise planning an early overseas training stint for its domestic fast bowlers. With over three months remaining before the new campaign gets underway, LSG are reportedly set to send a group of Indian pacers to South Africa to train alongside players from Durban Super Giants during the SA20 tournament.

The SA20 is scheduled to begin on December 26 and will run for a month, providing an extended window for structured training. Avesh Khan and Mohsin Khan are part of the initial shortlist for the trip, while one or two additional bowlers, including Naman Tiwari, could also be included. The group is expected to travel to Durban sometime next week, according to a report by Cricbuzz.

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None of the players identified for the programme are currently contracted to the BCCI or engaged with their respective state teams. However, to avoid any procedural issues, the franchise is understood to have sought and received the necessary permission from the Board of Control for Cricket in India.

Durban Super Giants’ support staff includes Lance Klusener, Tom Moody, Bharat Arun and Carl Crowe, with Moody, Arun and Crowe also forming part of LSG’s IPL coaching setup. The shared personnel allows for continuity in training methods and workload management across both franchises.

The primary objective of the South Africa stint is to help bowlers returning from long injury layoffs gradually regain rhythm and match fitness. Avesh, the right-arm pacer from Madhya Pradesh, has not played competitive cricket since the last IPL season, while left-armer Mohsin, from Uttar Pradesh, missed the entire previous edition. Both are believed to be in the latter stages of rehabilitation and have only recently resumed bowling, making the Durban programme a key step in their return to full fitness ahead of the IPL, which begins on March 26.

LSG are also considering including Naman Tiwari in the group. The franchise signed the 20-year-old left-arm pacer for Rs 1 crore at the recent mini-auction in Abu Dhabi and view him as a promising prospect. With Tiwari not named in Uttar Pradesh’s squad for the Vijay Hazare Trophy, the option of sending him to South Africa remains open.

At the mini-auction, LSG entered with a purse of Rs 22.95 crore and made several additions to bolster their squad. They secured Josh Inglis for Rs 8.6 crore, Mukul Choudhary for Rs 2.6 crore, Akshat Raghuwanshi for Rs 2.2 crore, and overseas reinforcements Anrich Nortje and Wanindu Hasaranga for Rs 2 crore each, along with Tiwari.