Young Indian opener Ruturaj Gaikwad, who has grown in stature since his debut in the Indian Premier League has picked his choice of three current favourite cricketers ignoring the likes of Indian Greats MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma in the list.
Given his ability to play in all three formats of the game, Ruturaj Gaikwad’s brilliant shot selection and aggressive style of play have elevated him to one of the prospects to replace Rohit Sharma at the top of the order in the future. Gaikwad has swiftly established himself as a prominent component of Team India, acting as Captain on several occasions.
Ruturaj Gaikwad is currently on tour with the Indian squad in South Africa, where they will play the last ODI of a three-match series that is now tied at 1-1 and followed by a two-match test series. In that Star Sports interview, he was also questioned about his current cricket idols, to which he replied:
“He named Indian batting great Virat Kohli, retired South African Ab de Villiers, and New Zealand’s Kane Williamson as his 3 favorite cricketers”.
“My cricketing idol while growing up was obviously Sachin Tendulkar, then MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli, so I kept changing,” Ruturaj Gaikwad said.
Ruturaj Gaikwad played key roles in two IPL title-winning campaigns and was a member of the leadership group in Chennai Super Kings. The Right-handed opener led the Indian side in the 2023 Asian Games, where they won the Gold Medal, and has been contributing effectively for the Men in Blue when given the chance at the highest level.
The 26-year-old is one of the consistent performers in the IPL and domestic cricket but has found himself out of the Indian team combination in recent times. He has excellent technical skills in his batting and could be an option to lead the Indian team in the foreseeable future.
Ruturaj Gaikwad is one of the emerging stars in Indian Cricket, as he showed excellent temperament to excel in all three formats of the game in domestic cricket, the youngster is one of those notable players who are on the verge of making it into the Indian team, with Rohit Sharma being in the last phase of his career, he could be option to open for India in the future.
Ruturaj Gaikwad will be anxious to contribute and assist India in winning only its second ODI series on South African soil when India and South Africa face off at Boland Park Stadium. He could also make his Test debut during the two-match Test series against South Africa, which begins on December 26th.
