Ruturaj Gaikwad had certainly shown that he has a lot of spark in him after the youngster guided Chennai Super Kings to a consecutive consolatory win as the yellow outfit defeated Kolkata Knight Riders by six wickets in Dubai on Thursday.
His 53-ball 72 run innings was pivotal in the victory for CSK and came right after his maiden IPL 50 against Royal Challengers Bangalore earlier this week, both as openers to show CSK have bright youngsters in their arsenal for the future.
The victory brings some semblance to CSK’s dreadful IPL 2020 campaign as they remain dead last with ten points.
And CSK skipper acknowledged that saying while the team management didn’t get enough time to look at him earlier, Gaikwad certainly has excited them off late with his batting.
While Ruturaj’s 53-ball 72 laid foundation of the win, it was Ravindra Jadeja, who took CSK over the finishing line with a cameo of 11-ball 31 that included 20 runs off the 19th over of the final over. He finished off the game in the final over with two sixes as CSK chased down 173.
“Ruturaj has shown the talent that he is. He came in and got positive with Covid. We didn't have much time to have a look at him,” MSD said at the post-match presentation ceremony.
“He is one of the talented youngsters going around. He is not someone who speaks a lot. Once you go inside, you are the only one handling the pressure. When we made him play the first game, he stepped out and got out. But one ball is never enough. I think it is very exciting how he has grabbed his chances.”