Former Australian men’s team head coach Justin Langer will be marking his return to coaching duties as he is set to coach Lucknow Super Giants at the Indian Premier League 2024. Langer had a successive stint as head coach of Australia, leading them to victories in Ashes and maiden T20I World Cup. 

Langer, who is succeeding Andy Flower at Lucknow Super Giants, will be coaching in the IPL for the first time. Lucknow Super Giants will be led by KL Rahul. In their previous two seasons, Lucknow Super Giants made it to the playoffs. Immediately after the IPL, T20I World Cup will be played from June 1, and a lot of players will be looking to secure their spot in the World Cup. 

KL Rahul would be eying the spot at the top of the order as he faces stiff competition from other players looking to be ahead in the race. Justin Langer also underscored the significance of IPL playing a pivotal role in producing best players. 

"If we have team success, everyone will be rewarded,” Justin Langer said during media conference.

“That'll be the message for all the players, including Bishi (Ravi Bishnoi) and KL (Rahul), and there's a few others who will be vying for T20 World Cup spots. That's all part of the game we play. The more they concentrate on playing well for Lucknow, the more their chances of being selected will increase,” he said.

"It's a sweet problem, but we'll work it out. It's nice to have so much talent in our squad," he said.

Justin Langer also provided an update on KL Rahul who is returning to lead the side after recovering from quadriceps tendon injury that kept him out of action from India’s five-match Test series against England. KL Rahul could only play the first Test match and remained absence for the rest of the four games. He also travelled to UK to consult a specialist. 

“Everyone's looking forward to seeing him,” Langer said.

“We know he has worked very hard to tick off all his return-to-play protocols. He's worked very hard. He's been practicing, he's been hitting lots of balls. He's hopefully ready to go. It's going to be nice to have the captain with us."