CSK vs PBKS: Ruturaj Gaikwad frustrated at his luck, stoops to a new low to win the coin toss

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad opened up about his bad luck with coin tosses before their match against the Punjab Kings (PBKS). Ruturaj Gaikwad revealed that legendary wicketkeeper-batter MS Dhoni advised him to practice winning the toss before matches.

Ruturaj Gaikwad lost the coin toss in eight out of nine matches during the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season. Gaikwad won the toss against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Chepauk Stadium, where the Chennai-based team secured a seven-wicket victory last month.

The five-time IPL champion managed to secure five victories out of nine matches, despite winning the toss only once. The Chennai franchise is currently in fourth place in the points table, with 10 points. They are tied with SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) but have a better net run rate (NRR).

We Were Practicing Coin Tosses In The Dug Out - Ruturaj Gaikwad

In a conversation with Star Sports, Ruturaj Gaikwad recalled MS Dhoni's advice on the significance of winning tosses, humorously mentioning practicing coin tosses in the dugout.

"Dhoni bhai told 'You can't control the toss but you have to win it so practice it' since then we were practicing coin tosses in the dug-out," Gaikwad said.

The Super Kings bounced back from consecutive losses to the Lucknow Super Giants. CSK defeated SunRisers Hyderabad by 78 runs at home. Ruturaj Gaikwad scored an impressive 98 runs off 54 balls as CSK posted a total of 212-3. Tushar Deshpande took four wickets to restrict Hyderabad to 134.

Chennai will take on the Punjab Kings in their next match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Wednesday, May 1. Concerning Ruturaj Gaikwad's luck with the toss and the dew factor, Chennai must aim for additional runs if they are asked to bat first.

Ruturaj Gaikwad Will Have Pain In His Heart - Aakash Chopra

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Aakash Chopra highlighted Ruturaj Gaikwad's exceptional batting form. Chopra mentioned that Gaikwad might feel disappointed about his exclusion from India's T20 World Cup squad.

"It's impossible to look beyond Ruturaj Gaikwad, considering the form he is in. He has almost hit back-to-back hundreds, and couldn't score a hundred in the second game, but he is playing extremely well. He is batting like pure desi ghee. He drives the ball very well and I feel he will have pain in his heart, that he could have been taken for the World Cup," Chopra said.

"To be very honest, I had myself proposed his name but a place couldn't have been created. He might also know that. It definitely looks a little unfair but only three openers could have gone - Rohit (Sharma), (Virat) Kohli, and Yashasvi Jaiswal is the only left-hander," he added.

Ruturaj Gaikwad has been in exceptional form in the IPL 2024, amassing 447 runs in nine matches with a remarkable strike rate of 149.49. He is the second-highest run scorer in the tournament, behind only Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) Virat Kohli, who has scored 500 runs this season.

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