‘MS Dhoni would be an asset to Ruturaj Gaikwad’: Former World Cup-winning all-rounder on CSK’s captaincy change | Cricket News

NEW DELHI: Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on Thursday revealed MS Dhoni‘s choice to step down because the captain of the staff, passing the torch to younger opener Ruturaj Gaikwad forward of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season opener in opposition to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on March 22.
In an unique chat with TimesofIndia.com, Kirti Azad, a member of India’s historic ICC ODI World Cup-winning squad in 1983, shared his insights on Dhoni’s choice.Azad speculated that Dhoni’s transfer might be pushed by a need to play with out the added tasks of captaincy.”It is his private choice. Possibly he desires to play freely now, not being a captain, if he has agreed to maintain enjoying within the IPL. Would it not be his final IPL? It utterly is determined by his health and his mind set. If he has give up his captaincy, which means he desires to get pleasure from as a participant and never have the strain of a captain. If he does effectively, I’m positive he want to keep on,” the veteran all-rounder mentioned.
Gaikwad, who has been related to the franchise because the 2019 IPL public sale, has garnered consideration for his constant performances and technical proficiency. Gaikwad’s journey with CSK has been marked by exceptional kind and reliability as a top-order batsman.
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Within the IPL 2023 season, Gaikwad showcased his potential by amassing a formidable complete of 590 runs in 16 matches.
Moreover, Gaikwad showcased his management talents by main the boys’s Indian staff to a gold medal victory within the Hangzhou Asian Video games final yr.
When questioned concerning the potential influence of honing his management abilities underneath the mentorship of Dhoni, Azad said, “There are good younger cricketers with good brains. If he has an excellent cricketing mind and is aware of easy methods to strategize, he could be a good captain. Ruturaj would by no means really feel the strain (of main Dhoni) as a result of I might say that Dhoni is among the finest captains India have produced. And take a look at him, how he took the staff alongside, and the way he carried it ahead. He noticed one thing extraordinary in Virat Kohli, and it made him play for an extended length. Dhoni can be an asset to Ruturaj’s captaincy as a result of he’ll information him every time he wants steerage. And Dhoni is a really useful man in that approach.”

It isn’t the primary time Dhoni stepped down from his captaincy at CSK. The previous India captain handed over the staff’s captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja simply two days forward of the beginning of the IPL 2022 season. Nevertheless, with Chennai’s marketing campaign encountering surprising turns, Dhoni reclaimed his place as captain, steering his staff to clinch their fifth IPL title in 2023.
Regardless of acknowledging such hurdles in sudden shifts of roles, Azad requested the followers to maintain religion within the change, saying, “The sport is stuffed with uncertainties. Sachin, probably the greatest gamers, was not the very best of the captains. It isn’t that he was not an excellent captain, however it’s simply that the outcomes didn’t come. So you’ll be able to’t decide an individual by a season or an innings.”