Ruturaj Gaikwad speaks out after impressive campaign in Vijay Hazare Trophy

Chennai franchise opener Ruturaj Gaikwad is in the form of his life. He said that being consistent and converting starts into big ones has been his focus since they lost in the finals of the Vijay Hazare Trophy to Saurashtra led by Jaydev Unadkat. 

Gaikwad smashed four tons in five innings which includes a double century too. He scored 660 runs in five matches at a stunning average of 220. He suffered an injury during the tournament and missed some of the matches for his side. 

“I’m just trying to enjoy the game and stay in the present, looking to give good starts and then convert them into big hundreds. I’m just trying to become as consistent as possible. It was important for me to get back well from injury. Had to lead from the front, being a senior player and an experienced player,” Gaikwad, who was adjudged Player of the Series, was quoted saying in News18. 

Toss played a huge factor: Gaikwad

The Maharashtra skipper scored 108 runs off 131 balls in the final which took his side to 248/9 after the end of the first innings. But their opponent chased down the target with 21 balls remaining and five wickets were still in their hands. “The kind of bowling they had, and the lines/lengths they bowled, it was challenging and I was enjoying it. Had to make sure that I’m staying calm,” he said.

The opener further said that the wicket was eased out during Saurashtra’s batting and it was a good toss to win for him. “There was a lot of difference in the pitch during the second innings. If we got the same conditions, things could have been different. After 25 overs of our innings, the pitch eased out but we were always behind the game due to that start. We could have got to 300 or 320-330 if the surface was better from the start,” added 25-year-old.

“Obviously, toss played a huge factor as we were always behind in the game. It was a 70-30 advantage with the toss but credit to the Saurashtra bowlers, they bowled really well.