Ahmedabad: Former India captain Anil Kumble was mighty impressed with Chennai Super Kings opener Ruturaj Gaikwad's six-hitting prowess during his 92-run knock in the IPL opener against Gujarat Titans, saying all his hits over the fence were "clean" and results of "pure timing". However, Gaikwad's show, featuring four boundaries and nine sixes from 50 balls, was overshadowed by the Titan's all-round performance. Shubman Gill struck 63 off 36 balls to help the defending champions Titans chase down the 179-run target in 19.2 overs. "We don't associate him (Gaikwad) with six hitting but to hit nine sixes in an inning is really amazing. Clean, it looked really clean. It was not like he was going out of shape and trying to muscle it, just pure timing," said Kumble in a release from the official IPL broadcasters.
Former India wicketkeeper Parthiv Patel also praised Gaikwad, one of the players retained by CSK during the mega auction last year ahead of IPL 2022, for his dazzling knock. "It seemed like Ruturaj Gaikwad was batting on a different wicket compared to the other batsmen. The approach he used is extremely praiseworthy," said Parthiv, a JioCinema IPL expert.
Gaikwad's form during IPL 2021 -- he scored 635 runs in 16 games, including a century -- was instrumental in CSK winning their fourth IPL title. His dip in form coincided with the Chennai outfit finishing ninth among 10 teams last year. He has a special liking for Titans bowling attack, as in the three innings he has played against Hardik Pandya's side, he has scored 218 runs, including a half-century in every game.