Ahead of the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL), a significant shift unfolded within the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) as the captaincy mantle transitioned from MS Dhoni to Ruturaj Gaikwad. Since assuming leadership, the 27-year-old has steered CSK to triumph in 7 out of 13 matches.
Lauding his former CSK teammate's captaincy prowess, Ambati Rayudu, Commentator & Cricket Expert with IPL official TV Broadcaster, expressed his confidence in Gaikwad's potential to lead the Indian team in the future.
Responding to a question from The Quint, Rayudu on a Star Sports Press Room Show remarked, “He's even won the Asian Games gold leading as the captain. He has a long way to go and I'm sure there will be a day when we will all be talking about him leading India.”
Gaikwad, acquired by CSK in 2019, currently stands as the tournament's second-highest run-scorer, tallying 583 runs in his 13 appearances, featuring a century and an impressive count of 5 half-centuries. Reflecting on Gaikwad's evolution, Rayudu remarked on his swift progress and commended his exceptional leadership at the helm of the team.
Ruturaj has been a fantastic cricketer first and he has improved rapidly in the last 2-3 years compared to any other cricketer in that period. It's not been long since he's started playing the IPL and from there to become a captain of such a big franchise which has great history and which has been led by a legend for such a long time and he's been doing a fantastic job.Ambati Rayudu
Rayudu further highlighted Gaikwad's seamless adaptation to the captaincy role, noting his confident decision-making on the field, without the constant need for input from former skipper MS Dhoni.
Even on the ground, you don't see MS Dhoni giving him a lot of suggestions. Ruturaj has been taking a lot of calls on the ground and he should be given credit for it.Ambati Rayudu
The former Indian cricketer also praised the CSK management for empowering Gaikwad to make independent decisions.
Even with MS Dhoni behind the stumps, Ruturaj doesn't feel the need to explain everything to MS Dhoni or Stephen Fleming so he has the freedom to take the call on his own. It's a great trait of CSK and great thing from MS and Stephen to give Ruturaj the freedom to run the game. Ruturaj is doing a fantastic job.Ambati Rayudu
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