Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad is a doubtful starter for their home game against Delhi Captals (DC) at Chepauk on Saturday. MS Dhoni is likely to take over captaincy if Gaikwad doesn't recover in time.
Gaikwad had suffered a blow on his unprotected elbow against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Guwahati last Sunday after stepping out to Tushar Deshpande and missing the ball in the second over in CSK's unsuccessful chase of 183.
"Yeah, we're hoping he [Gaikwad] is going to try and have a bat today for training," Mike Hussey, CSK's batting coach, said at his press conference on the eve of the match against DC. "And, yeah, it [elbow] is still a little bit sore, but it's improving every day. So, we're very hopeful that he'll be fine for tomorrow.
"I don't think we've actually thought about that [captaincy] too much. Well, I haven't thought about it too much. I'm sure Stephen Fleming [CSK head coach] and Rutu have thought about that. But we've got some young guy coming through. He's behind the stumps. Maybe he can do a good job. I'm not sure. He's got a bit of experience in the role, so maybe he could do it. But I'm not exactly sure, to be honest."
After being struck on the forearm last weekend, Gaikwad received some treatment on the field and continued to bat, scoring his second half-century in three matches this season. On Friday, Gaikwad only had a light workout for about ten minutes, taking throwdowns outside the nets. If he isn't available to play, CSK will have to find a new top-order batter as well.
Devon Conway, who was among the first group of batters to bat the nets on Friday, might be frontrunner to come in for Gaikwad and perhaps open with Rahul Tripathi, with Rachin Ravindra dropping down to No. 3. That may force CSK to leave out Jamie Overton and bring in an Indian fast bowler in Anshul Kamboj.
Dhoni, 43, is functioning at reduced capacity, with Fleming saying his knees don't allow him to bat too long. He has been CSK captain since their inception in 2008, barring the two years they were suspended and a few matches in 2022 when they tried handing over the reins to Ravindra Jadeja and it didn't work out. Dhoni last led the team in the IPL final in 2023. CSK won that game, adding a fifth IPL title to their collection. But when the new season began, they had appointed Gaikwad as captain. CSK finished fifth in 2024, and missed the playoffs on net run rate.
Andhra's Shaik Rasheed, Tamil Nadu's C Andre Siddarth and Delhi's Vansh Bedi are the reserve Indian batters in the CSK squad, but all three are uncapped in the IPL.
Mumbai teenager Ayush Mhatre, who recently broke Yashasvi Jaiswal's record for the youngest batter to hit a 150-plus score in List A cricket, has joined CSK's camp as a support player. It is understood that Mhatre's inclusion in the squad is unrelated to Gaikwad's injury or any other potential injury concerns.