Ruturaj Gaikwad torn apart as ‘clueless captain’ by 1983 World Cup hero
Former Indian batter Kris Srikkanth mentioned that Chennai Super Kings skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad was almost clueless when his side was thrashed by the Punjab Kings bowlers. This was evident when Priyansh Arya launched Matt Henry during their home match at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Chennai returned to their fortress in the MA Chidambaram Stadium; however, they could not produce a special performance, as none of the CSK bowlers gave away runs at an economy rate of under 9. While the two lead pacers and the impact player conceded runs at over 11 runs per over.
"Ruturaj had no clue as a captain as to whom to bowl and when" - Kris Srikkanth
Despite having put on a healthy 209 runs on the board, CSK bowlers were rendered ineffective by the PBKS batters, who chased down the target with ease. Speaking of CSK's bowling performance and highlighting the poor captaincy stint from Ruturaj Gaikwad, Srikkanth highlighted that the CSK skipper was absolutely clueless.
"The bowlers totally lost the plot under Priyansh Arya's onslaught. Though he scored only 39, because it was off 11 balls, things opened out for the rest. Matt Henry was clueless. Ruturaj had no clue as a captain as to whom to bowl and when," said Srikkanth on his YouTube channel.
"The match was over there itself in the first four overs. CSK bowled terribly to Cooper Connolly. Instead of giving loop, they made him cut ball after ball. They didn't go for wickets at all, the CSK bowlers. Wrist spinners have to take wickets," he added.
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Kris Srikkanth questions Ruturaj Gaikwad on mishandling Prasanth Veer
Srikkanth went on to slam Ruturaj Gaikwad for not having wisely used Prasanth Veer, the 20-year-old all-rounder who made his debut for the Super Kings during the defeat to Punjab Kings. He was included for a whopping price of INR 14.20 crore after the youngster was cited as a direct like-for-like replacement for Ravindra Jadeja.
CSK bowlers, especially the two spinners Rahul Chahar and Noor Ahmed, both struggled against the Punjab Kings batters, as they were thrashed for runs. However, Prashant was nowhere to be seen.
"They said Prashant Veer is an all-rounder and a replacement for Ravindra Jadeja. Yet, he wasn't given one over with the ball. In the same way as in the last match, Matthew Short was playing for his off-spin but didn't bowl a single over. Prashant Veer neither batted well nor bowled at all, and he's been called Jadeja's like-to-like replacement," said Srikkanth (via the aforementioned source).
Will CSK pass the captaincy baton to Sanju Samson?
The Chennai Super Kings included Sanju Samson as a key player in their squad in 2026 in the form of a trade from the Rajasthan Royals. The veteran wicket-keeper had captained the franchise over the past seasons and led them to a final in 2022.
Considering his success in the IPL as a captain, Sanju Samson might be considered a likely replacement for Ruturaj Gaikwad. Ruturaj Gaikwad, on the other hand, has not had the best stint as captain ever since he took the captaincy from MS Dhoni in 2024.
CSK has failed to advance into the playoffs over the last two seasons. This season as well, they have started with two consecutive defeats in the two opening games of the IPL, first against the Rajasthan Royals and then against the Punjab Kings.
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