NEWS
Follow UsBefore the start of the Ireland series, Ruturaj Gaikwad had just played nine T20I matches. But with India sending a relatively inexperienced squad to the Irish nation, Gaikwad, who had just had an excellent Indian Premier League, was appointed the vice-captain of the side.
Gaikwad will also lead India in the upcoming Asian Games in September, when the majority of first-team players will be busy with the World Cup preparations. With the previous experience of leading Maharashtra, the CSK opener knows a thing or two about captaincy.
“I think leadership role is a very complicated thing, to be honest. What Mahi bhai always says is to take it one game at a time. Just be in the present moment, don’t worry about the future. Everyone creates hype and whatever it is,” Gaikwad said in the post-match press conference.
“I am not the kind of person who do really watch social media and hear things about what anyone is saying about me. I think this is one of the traits that I have learned at CSK. I am pretty much clear about giving my best in the field, coming back home, chilling with my friends.”
Inside the CSK camp, Gaikwad has garnered a reputation for being a sorted individual without focusing on outside things much. MS Dhoni has even hailed his cricketing acumen and how he brings them to the table during his batting. Explaining his ideology, Gaikwad explained that leadership is about giving confidence to 10 other players in the squad.
“Leadership for me is to give maximum confidence to the ten players who are playing. Make sure that I step into their shoes and think about what they are thinking and what they are going through.
“Sometimes the batters and bowlers have their own plans, they are really thinking about the game from their perspective. So, I feel it is important to back them in that moment. After the game, there is always an opportunity of what went wrong, what we could have improved. For me in the game particularly, it is more about giving freedom to the players. Make sure they back themselves first. Too many suggestions also create confusion; this is what I believe,” Gaikwad added.
Gaiwad was in his element yesterday with his second T20I half-century and later, Rinku Singh built on it with a 38 of his own. His finishing abilities gave a lot of happiness to the Indian fans - especially the way he approached the pacers with elan. He took some time to assess the condition, but with some lusty blows later, he ensured that India scored 185 in 20 overs. That yielded him the Player of the Match award in what was effectively his first T20I innings.
“Rinku is already everyone’s favourite in the IPL. The way he has batted in the IPL, he has shown a lot of maturity. I think one of the standout things about him is that he doesn’t attack from ball one. He gives himself time, no matter what the situation is. He always assesses the condition and then starts to take on the bowlers.
“It is good learning from all the upcoming players who want to be a finisher. It is always important that you take some time, and you can always cover it up later. He knows when to pull the trigger. It was an important innings for him; he was batting for the first time in international cricket. I feel this will help him a lot,” Gaikwad said.
