Ruturaj Gaikwad played the captaincy stroke but that wasn’t enough for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) to save the IPL 2024 match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
But with his brilliant fifty against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Wednesday, May 1, Gaikwad made an impressive entry into the record books. The elegant right-handed batsman surpassed the legendary MS Dhoni to score the most runs in an IPL season as CSK captain.
Gaikwad surpassed Dhoni’s tally of 461 in IPL 2013 and entered the record books by becoming the first CSK skipper to score more than 500 runs in an IPL season. Ruturaj now has 509 runs in the ongoing IPL 2024, surpassing Virat Kohli’s tally of 500 runs to secure the Orang Cap.
Here is the list of CSK captains with the most runs in an IPL season:
509: Ruturaj Gaikwad (2023)
461: MS Dhoni (2013)
455: MS Dhoni (2018)
419: MS Dhoni (2019)
Meanwhile, Ruturaj Gaikwad also became the first player to cross the 500-run mark in the ongoing IPL 2024. With his knock of 62 runs against Punjab Kings (PBKS), the CSK captain has not only overtaken his former captain Dhoni but also set a remarkable record at the Chepauk Stadium.
With this knock, Gaikwad surpassed the record for most runs scored by a batsman at the Chepauk Stadium in a single IPL season and scored a total of 396 runs in the current season. With this performance, he surpassed his teammate Devon Conway’s previous record of 390 runs from 2023.
Apart from these achievements, Gaikwad also joined an elite club by becoming only the second cricketer to score over 500 runs three times in a single IPL season. This achievement puts him alongside Suresh Raina, who achieved this milestone in 2021, 2023 and 2024, showing his consistency.
Another great achievement awaits Ruturaj Gaikwad
Well, if Gaikwad manages to maintain his form and win the Orange Cap by the end of the season, he will make his mark in the history books as he will be the first CSK captain to win the coveted award for most Runs this season wins an IPL season.
Furthermore, he would be the first CSK player to win the Orange Cap twice in the IPL. Notably, Ruturaj was not included in India’s preliminary squad for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024 despite being in excellent form with the bat and being the leading run-scorer in the ongoing IPL 2024.
As for the CSK vs PBKS IPL 2024 match, Gaikwad scored 62 runs off 48 balls with 5 fours and 2 sixes to take the defending champions to 162/7 on the board against the tourists at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Chasing the target, Jonny Bairstow’s 46 and Rilee Rossouw’s 43 took PBKS over the line with 13 balls remaining while CSK suffered a 7-wicket defeat at home. However, CSK remains at the third position in the IPL 2024 points table but needs to get back to winning ways to qualify for the playoffs as the race for the knockout stages has already intensified.