Had to shoulder responsibility after dismissal of top-order batsmen: Ruturaj Gaikwad

Young opener Ruturaj Gaikwad is glad that he could take up the responsibility of guiding Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to an eventual winning total from a "tough situation" against reigning champions Mumbai Indians (MI) in their opening match of the second phase of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021.

The 24-year-old Gaikwad scored an unbeaten 88 off 58 deliveries to guide CSK to a fighting 156/6 from 24/4. CSK eventually won the match by 20 runs on Sunday. "Obviously the situation was tough as most of the top-order batsmen got out. I had to take the responsibility and then find a way how can we reach up to 120-130," Gaikwad told teammate Deepak Chahar in a video posted on IPL website.

"And after spending some time on the crease the target got extended by 10 runs everytime, 140-150 looked possible then."

Gaikwad took up the onus on himself after the likes of Faf du Plessis, Moeen Ali, Suresh Raina and skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni were dismissed early, while Ambati was retired hurt. He and senior pro Ravindra Jadeja (26) shared crucial 81 runs for the fifth wicket to take CSK forward and lay the foundation for the winning total.

"The conversation I had with Jaddu bhai (Jadeja) in between was to build a partnership, it was the plan and thankfully it got executed," said Gaikwad, who bagged his fifth man-of-the-match award in 13 IPL matches.

"Our preparation was good, we came a little early here than other teams. We had plenty of match simulations where we tried simulating slog overs batting as well as early on in the innings, setting a target as well. I think that was really helpful."