Watch: MS Dhoni's replacement found as Ruturaj Gaikwad impresses fans with his new wicketkeeper avatar

After replacing MS Dhoni as the captain of Chennai Super Kings, it looks like Ruturaj Gaikwad is now gearing up to replace the legendary wicketkeeper behind the stumps as well.

The CSK skipper was seen flaunting his wicketkeeping skills on Monday (June 17) when he was plying his trade for Puneri Bappa against Chhatrapati Sambhaji Kings in the ongoing Maharashtra Premier League (MPL). Over the years, one has seen non-wicketkeeping players donning wicketkeeping gloves in case of an emergency during the game.

However, Ruturaj Gaikwad was standing behind the stumps from the very start. And it did not take the Puneri Bappa captain long to showcase his wicketkeeping talent. On the very first ball of the innings, he made a diving stop after the bowler delivered a wide ball on the on side. The video of Ruturaj Gaikwad's save went viral in no time.

Watch Ruturaj Gaikwad in new avatar:

 

Ruturaj Gaikwad 𝙠𝙚𝙚𝙥𝙞𝙣𝙜 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙬𝙞𝙘𝙠𝙚𝙩𝙨 for Puneri Bappa 🧤#MaharashtraPremierLeague#JioCinemaSports#MPLonJioCinema #MPLonSports18 pic.twitter.com/8WqsmSa5Sr

— JioCinema (@JioCinema) June 17, 2024

Ruturaj Gaikwad has led Puneri Bappa from the very front in the ongoing MPL season. He is the leading run-scorer for his team in the competition. In seven games so far, he has scored 290 runs at an average of 48.33 and a strike rate of 168.60. The right-handed batsman has hit two fifties as well.

Before playing in the MPL, he had a fine outing in the IPL as well. Just a day before the start of the season, MS Dhoni stepped down as the captain of CSK and Ruturaj Gaikwad was named as his replacement. In his first season as CSK captain, the Maharashtra star could not lead the five-time winners to the playoffs but showed his ability to deliver under pressure.

The added responsibility of captaincy did not affect his batting much as he finished the tournament as the second-highest run-scorer. In 14 games, Gaikwad scored 583 runs with the help of one century and four fifties. He will be aiming to make CSK the first team to win the IPL six teams when he leads the team next year.