“You have to first think for the franchise”

Former Indian opener Sadagoppan Ramesh slammed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad for his overall captaincy over the past three years. Gaikwad took over as CSK captain from MS Dhoni ahead of IPL 2024. However, the Men in Yellow have missed the playoffs in each of the last three seasons.

Ramesh further criticized Gaikwad for changing his batting position from opening to No.3 in IPL 2025 and returning to the top last season, with the intention of breaking into the Indian side. Instead, the former batter believes the CSK skipper should have prioritized franchise success.

Detailing his disappointment with Gaikwad as CSK captain, Ramesh said on his YouTube channel:

“Where he disappointed me most was in IPL 2025. That season, he played only five matches but never opened. We never saw the Conway-Gaikwad opening combination. Despite shining as an opener in the IPL, Ruturaj was hell-bent on batting at No.3 that season. The main reason for that was that he decided Shubman Gill’s comeback into the team closed his door. Because of that, he wanted to bat at No.3 to try and get into the Indian team that way, and that badly hurt CSK. You have to first think for the franchise that signed you for 18 crores, especially as a captain.”

He added:

“His first priority as captain had to be ensuring he bats in the position that’s most beneficial for CSK. When a franchise has trusted you with captaincy, your mind has to first operate on how to achieve success here.”

Gaikwad has poor captaincy numbers for CSK in the IPL, with only 14 wins out of 33 matches.

“He rarely shone as captain” – Sadagoppan Ramesh on Ruturaj Gaikwad

Sadagoppan Ramesh believes that, beyond the numbers, Ruturaj Gaikwad had no high moments as CSK captain despite the extended run. The five-time champions finished eighth in the IPL 2026 standings, winning only six out of 14 matches.

“Having changed the head coach, the next question is whether Ruturaj Gaikwad will be replaced as captain. Forget the numbers, but if you just look at high moments as captain, he has none in my eyes. He has led for more than two seasons, which means he has been given a proper opportunity to shine as captain. But he rarely shone as captain,” said Ramesh (via the aforementioned source).

Gaikwad’s batting also suffered in IPL 2026 as he finished with 337 runs at a subpar average of 28.10 in 14 matches.