Chennai Super Kings faced a significant setback in the 2025 Indian Premier League as skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad was officially ruled out of the season on Thursday, April 10. The announcement was made by CSK head coach Stephen Fleming, who confirmed that the 28-year-old batsman from Maharashtra suffered a fracture in his elbow and will not feature in the remaining matches of the tournament. Gaikwad had taken over the captaincy reins from MS Dhoni at the start of IPL 2024.
In the wake of Gaikwad’s absence, Dhoni is set to resume leadership duties for the Chennai-based side.
“We have an uncapped player, MS Dhoni, who will take over as captain for the remainder of the IPL,” Fleming told media mediapersons in Chennai on Thursday.
The injury that led to Gaikwad’s exit occurred on March 30, during CSK’s clash with Rajasthan Royals in Guwahati. He was struck by a short delivery from England pacer Jofra Archer. Though he continued to play through pain in subsequent games against Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, the team’s medical staff waited for the swelling to reduce before conducting an MRI.
“He got hit in Guwahati (vs RR). He’s been operating with an amount of pain. We got an X-ray, which was inconclusive, and we had an MRI, which revealed a fracture in his elbow, in the radial neck,” Fleming explained.
Despite Ruturaj Gaikwad’s determination to keep playing, the franchise ultimately had to make the difficult call to sideline him for the rest of the tournament.
“So we’re disappointed and feel for him. We appreciate the efforts that he’s gone to in terms of trying to play, but he will be out of the tournament.”
Fleming also mentioned that Gaikwad expressed his willingness to “continue”, but the team had to make a responsible decision considering the severity of the injury.
In Gaikwad’s absence, CSK is entitled to name a replacement. According to PTI, the team is likely to bring in 17-year-old Ayush Mhatre, a promising top-order batter from Mumbai. Mhatre, who joined CSK’s camp as a support player recently, has made an impression in domestic cricket, featuring in nine first-class and seven List A matches. Notably, he became the youngest batter to score over 150 runs in a List A game, drawing comparisons to Gaikwad for his elegant batting at the top of the order.
The coming days are expected to bring official confirmation of Mhatre’s inclusion, as CSK recalibrates its strategy with Dhoni once again at the helm.
