IPL 2026: CSK need captain Ruturaj Gaikwad to rise before season slips away
Ruturaj Gaikwad (Source: IPLT20.com)
Published - 16 May 2026, 04:43 AM• Read time - 3 mins
Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have hit a major roadblock in their path to the playoffs, after being hammered by seven wickets against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, Lucknow.
The five-time champions were blown away by Mitchell Marsh’s storm, whose belligerent 90 (38) made a complete mockery of their bowling unit, racing to the 188-run target in just 16.4 overs.
After a soul-crushing defeat, CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad was at a loss for words, admitting that his team couldn’t have done anything more and was completely outclassed by LSG. Batting first, CSK posted 187/5 in their allotted 20 overs, after a lower-order blitzkrieg from Shivam Dube (32 off 16).
An extra 25-30 more runs on the board wouldn't have mattered much, given the pace LSG batters were going at. However, with CSK without their second-highest wicket-taker of the season in Jamie Overton, they needed to give an extra cushion to their bowling line up, now being carried single-handedly by Anshul Kamboj, who also had a rare off day in Lucknow.
Gaikwad failing to lead from the front
While CSK’s batters have struggled for the majority of the season, captain Ruturaj Gaikwad also hasn’t been able to show the way with his willow. His inability to dominate bowlers in the powerplay has hurt his team massively, as they often fail to post imposing totals.
After scoring just 104 runs in his first seven innings, Gaikwad scored his first half-century of the season against Gujarat Titans, playing an unbeaten innings of 74* (60) to rescue CSK from a collapse.
The batting approach under question
However, his knock was severely criticised as Gaikwad batted under a strike rate of 100 for the majority of the innings and completed his fifty off 49 balls. He further scored a match-winning 67* (48) against Mumbai Indians and made a valuable contribution of 42 (28) in the 204-run chase against LSG.
Gaikwad has accumulated 306 runs from 12 innings at an average of 30.60 and a strike rate of 124.89 in the season so far. However, he’s yet to play an impactful innings that deflates the opponent. In comparison, his opening partner, Sanju Samson, has been the backbone of CSK's batting with 450 runs from 12 innings, having registered two hundreds and one fifty to his name.
Can Gaikwad save CSK's sinking ship?
Samson has been the major reason behind CSK’s turnaround, with three Player of the Match awards to his name. However, in contrast, Gaikwad has failed to stamp his authority with the bat.
Gaikwad just hasn’t been good enough with returns from his bat and must stand up for his team now more than ever. The skipper will now have to steer their sinking ship as CSK look to avoid an unprecedented hat-trick of seasons without playoffs qualification.
