Indian Premier League 2024

'Bhai eas tarah to KL bhi ITL badiya khelta hai' - Fans react as Hardik Pandya says Ruturaj Gaikwad is going to do wonders for Indian cricket

Gujarat skipper Hardik Pandya has praised Ruturaj Gaikwad for his brilliant half-century knock in the ITL 2023 opener.

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Ruturaj Gaikwad (Image credit: Twitter)

Ruturaj Gaikwad Ruturaj Gaikwad (Image credit: Twitter)

Ruturaj Gaikwad came out all guns blazing in the opening clash of the 16th edition of the Indian T20 League, but his impressive innings went in vain as Chennai lost to Gujarat by 5 wickets. The 26-year-old had dominated the first innings, prompting the Gujarat skipper to say he was worried about when Gaikwad was scoring and heaped praise on the opening batter as he would do wonders for Indian cricket.

The right-handed batter scored 92 runs off 50 balls with four fours and nine sixes at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday. A little cameo from top-order batter Moeen Ali and Chennai skipper MS Dhoni in the last over gave the four-time winners a respectable score of 178.

During the post-match conference, Pandya told reporters: "Some of the shots he (Gaikwad) played was nothing to do with the bowling. There were some tremendous shots. Full credit to him the way he batted, and if he continues to do so he is going to do wonders for Indian cricket."

"He has the game and when the time comes I am sure the Indian cricket team will back him enough," he added.

We were finding it difficult to understand: Pandya

The former Mumbai all-rounder admitted that at one stage it looked like Chennai were going to score 220+ runs. However, Gaikwad was the only one to put up any resistance against the Gujarat bowlers and after his dismissal, Chennai had to settle for an average score.

“We all know the kind of player he is, but at one point in time, CSK were going to score 220-230. We were finding it difficult to understand what areas we should bowl in because he is an all-round cricketer and plays genuine cricket shots. I genuinely felt we couldn’t err to him at all. Some of the shots that he played were not off bad balls, those were good balls and that made the big difference,” Pandya said.

Chasing 179 runs, Shubman Gill and Wriddhiman Saha got off to a good start by dominating the powerplay. However, the latter got dismissed in the fourth over, but the former remained at the crease and played the anchoring role, scoring 63 runs off 36 balls. The match went to the last over where Rashid Khan and Rahul Tewatia held their nerve and took the team over the line.

Here's how fans reacted: 

 

Hardik Pandya Chennai Indian Premier League Ruturaj Gaikwad Gujarat