Ruturaj Gaikwad openly admits his CSK captaincy role will be minimal

The star Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opening batsman and the newly-appointed captain, Ruturaj Gaikwad, has openly admitted that his captaincy role will be minimal as there are a lot of experienced campaigners in the team, who know how to operate very well.

Gaikwad has been chosen as the successor of the most successful captain in the Indian Premier League (IPL) history – MS Dhoni. Ruturaj Gaikwad will start his stint as the skipper in the Indian Premier League (IPL) with the battle against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on March 22.

Since making his debut for the franchise in 2020, Gaikwad has delivered sensational performances on a consistent basis while batting in the top order. In 52 matches in the league, the opening batsman has slammed 1797 runs at an average of 39.07 and a strike rate of 135.52. He has smashed one century and 14 half-centuries in the competition.

The Chennai Super Kings (CSK) shared a video on their official X account where Ruturaj Gaikwad shared his first reaction to being named as the new captain of the team.

In the clip, Gaikwad said that he is quite privileged and has a huge responsibility on his shoulders. He also expressed excitement about taking over the charge of the team and isn’t worried at all. Gaikwad understands the fact that the presence of leaders like Dhoni, Jadeja, and Ajinkya Rahane in the team will help him to improve as captain.

“It feels good. It’s a privilege obviously. I feel more than that. It’s a huge responsibility but I’m really excited because of the kind of group we have. Everyone’s experienced enough, so not much of a thing for me to do. Plus, I have Mahi (Dhoni) bhai in the team, Jaddu (Jadeja) bhai as well, Ajju (Rahane) bhai as well, who’s been a great captain, to guide me. Nothing much to worry, just looking forward to enjoy it,” said Gaikwad.

"Feels Good! It's a privilege!" – Captain Rutu 🗣️🦁 #WhistlePodu #Yellove 🦁💛 pic.twitter.com/HPyWuEajIg

— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) March 21, 2024

It was MS Dhoni’s call with lot of consideration looking at the future – Stephen Fleming on Ruturaj Gaikwad’s appointment as captain

Speaking at a pre-match press conference, CSK head coach Stephen Fleming revealed that Dhoni made the decision to hand over the captaincy to Gaikwad with an eye on the future. He said:

“It was MS Dhoni’s call with lot of consideration looking at the future. The timing was good. It’ll be a grooming process for Ruturaj.”

When asked about his chat with Ruturaj Gaikwad on his captaincy appointment, the CSK head coach said that the leadership role being up for grabs wasn’t a secret in the CSK dressing room and they were planning for it for quite some time now.

Stephen Fleming also said that they are better prepared for the captaincy transition, unlike the last time when Ravindra Jadeja came under tremendous pressure and couldn’t continue as skipper in 2022.

“The big thing about a couple of years ago, we weren’t ready to move beyond MS. At that stage it was unthinkable. The leadership isn’t a secret so we have been planning about it for this moment. So we are more prepared now to look at life after. We are well prepared this time,” he said.