Opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad was in excellent form against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) as he played a 99-run knock to help Chennai Super Kings (CSK) post 202/2 in 20 overs. The right-handed batter, playing at his home stadium, MCA Stadium in Pune, displayed great footwork and hand-eye coordination to get the better of the SRH pace attack.
Former Team India coach Ravi Shastri praised Gaikwad for his knock against SRH and he said that the batter plays express pace as most do against medium pace. "So much to like about RG. Plays express pace like most do against medium pace. He will get there in time. No Doubts. Classy stuff tonite," tweeted Shastri.
Gaikwad was at his best, especially while batting against the pace of Umran Malik. He just stayed firm at his crease, manoeuvring the ball wherever he liked. He went on to hit three sixes and a four in two overs against the speedster, including a boundary on a 154 kmph ball, the fastest of the 2022 IPL season.
The batter, along with Devon Conway, put on 182 runs for the opening wicket. This was the highest opening partnership in this season of the IPL and also the highest for any wicket for CSK across all seasons of the tournament. Gaikwad is just the second batter after Suresh Raina to have scored 99 for CSK in the IPL without reaching a century. While Raina remained unbeaten on this score, Gaikwad got dismissed.
Against SRH, CSK batted first and the MS Dhoni-led side posted 202/2 in 20 overs. Mukesh Choudhary then took four wickets as CSK restricted SRH to 189/6, registering a win by 13 runs.
CSK are ninth in the points table with six points and they will next square off against Royal Challengers Bangalore on Wednesday, May 4.
