Ruturaj Gaikwad a puppet captain as MS Dhoni set to pull strings? Ex-RCB star's earth-shattering claim

Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) star has sensationally claimed that Ruturaj Gaikwad will be a puppet captain of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) as all strings will be pulled by MS Dhoni.

On Thursday, March 21, CSK initiated the second captaincy transition with the appointment of star opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad as skipper. In 2022 when CSK tried to make Ravindra Jadeja a successor of MS Dhoni, they failed miserably as the all-rounder couldn’t handle the pressure and the legendary captain had to take back the charge.

The 5-time Indian Premier League (IPL) champions will be hoping for a smooth transition this time around with Gaikwad at the helm. The CSK opener has a decent amount of captaincy experience under his belt as he leads Maharashtra in domestic cricket and he has also won the Asian Games gold medal as the skipper of the India National Cricket Team.

Despite all the captaincy experience Gaikwad brings, the former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) star Shreevats Goswami is of the opinion that he will not be the one with entire authority as MS Dhoni will be calling the shots.

“Post match summary for @ChennaiIPL games will be missed . @msdhoni 🐐 but we all know who will actually be calling the shots . #MSDhoni𓃵,” former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) player stated.

Post match summary for @<!---->C<!---->h<!---->e<!---->n<!---->n<!---->a<!---->i<!---->I<!---->P<!---->L games will be missed . @<!---->m<!---->s<!---->d<!---->h<!---->o<!---->n<!---->i 🐐 but we all know who will actually be calling the shots . #<!---->M<!---->S<!---->D<!---->h<!---->o<!---->n<!---->i<!---->?<!---->?<!---->?<!---->?

— Shreevats goswami (@shreevats1) M<!---->a<!---->r<!---->c<!---->h<!----> <!---->2<!---->1<!---->,<!----> <!---->2<!---->0<!---->2<!---->4

Dhoni, who is the most successful skipper in IPL history, will provide the much-needed guidance to Gaikwad in his first season as full-time captain in IPL. Also, with the announcement of Gaikwad as the new skipper of the team, it is speculated that Dhoni will officially be retiring from IPL after the end of the upcoming season.

Ruturaj Gaikwad is lucky to do his captaincy internship under the great leader MS Dhoni – Mohammad Kaif

Former India National Cricket Team batsman Mohammad Kaif also took to his official X (formerly known as Twitter) handle to express his opinions on Dhoni’s resignation as captain.

Kaif said that Dhoni exactly knows when to step down from captaincy and labelled Gaikwad as a lucky cricketer as he will get to do an internship under the legendary skipper in IPL 2024.

“MS Dhoni knows when to step up and when to step down. Ruturaj Gaikwad is lucky to do his captaincy internship under the great leader. Thala the Grandmaster of T20 cricket. #Dhoni,” former India National Cricket Team batsman Mohammad Kaif said.

MS Dhoni knows when to step up and when to step down. Ruturaj Gaikwad is lucky to do his captaincy internship under the great leader. Thala the Grandmaster of T20 cricket. #<!---->D<!---->h<!---->o<!---->n<!---->i

— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) M<!---->a<!---->r<!---->c<!---->h<!----> <!---->2<!---->1<!---->,<!----> <!---->2<!---->0<!---->2<!---->4

Ruturaj Gaikwad’s first match as the full-time Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain will be against the Faf du Plessis-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Chepauk on March 22.

Tamil Nadu’s Baba Indrajith also joined the cricketers in expressing their emotions on MS Dhoni’s captaincy exit. Despite being heartbroken with the development, he praised Dhoni as a selfless leader who puts the team forward. He also felt that Dhoni would return as captain for the last home game in Chepauk.

“It’s heartbreaking. But what a captain and a leader ! His decision to hand over the captaincy shows his selflessness and the vision for “his ” team. Gut feel – Dhoni might captain the last home game in the league phase,” Tamil Nadu star wrote on X.

It’s heartbreaking 💔
But what a captain and a leader ! His decision to hand over the captaincy shows his selflessness and the vision for “his ” team💛

Gut feel – Dhoni might captain the last home game in the league phase 🤔

— Indrajith Baba (@IndrajithBaba) M<!---->a<!---->r<!---->c<!---->h<!----> <!---->2<!---->1<!---->,<!----> <!---->2<!---->0<!---->2<!---->4