Credit: X
Ruturaj Gaikwad, the newly appointed CSK captain, revealed that MS Dhoni hinted to him about a change in the leadership role at the franchise last year. While speaking on a video uploaded by the IPL, the 27-year-old remarked that MS Dhoni indicated to him about the CSK captaincy transfer, and said, “Be ready. It should not come as a surprise to you.”
After making his debut in the Indian Premier League in the 2020 season with the Chennai Super Kings, Ruturaj Gaikwad has emerged as one of the most prolific batters in the tournament. In the 2021 and 2023 IPL winning seasons for CSK, the right-handed opening batter amassed more than 600 runs on each occasion, playing a key role in securing the titles for the franchise.
The IPL posted the video of Ruturaj Gaikwad’s initial reaction to becoming the new captain of CSK on their official X account, wherein he said, “Last year itself, Mahi bhai had just hinted about captaincy at some point of time. Just hinted that ‘Be ready. It should not come as a surprise to you.’ When we came into the camp, obviously he made me involved with some of the practice match simulations.”
The orange cap winner from IPL 2021 spoke about how everyone asked him if he had become the new captain of CSK after MS Dhoni took to social media to post about his “new role.” He stated, “I remember him posting about ‘new role’ on social media. Everybody was just pointing towards me and asking me whether you are the next captain. Maybe it meant something else but at the back of the mind, he knew. He came and said 'I've decided this and this…' But now that I am here, I am looking forward to it.”
Ruturaj Gaikwad also talked about the trust MS Dhoni showed in him to lead CSK into the future and said, “Feels great to be part of this wonderful franchise. I started my IPL career here, and to be able to be trusted by MS Dhoni for a leadership role. That speaks a lot. The challenge lies ahead though.”
Here is Ruturaj Gaikwad revealing how MS Dhoni hinted about CSK captaincy transfer:
