Ruturaj Gaikwad HAMMERS 168, teammate Azim Kazi reveals SIMILARITY with Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni, read MORE

Maharashtra captain Ruturaj Gaikwad continued his sizzling run of form in Vijay Hazare Trophy, with another ‘daddy hundred’ in the semifinal clash against Assam on Wednesday (November 28). A couple of days after scoring a record-breaking 220 not out in the quarterfinal against Uttar Pradesh, Gaikwad clobbered 168 off 126 balls with 6 sixes and 16 fours against Assam in the last four clash.

Gaikwad was looking good for back-to-back double hundreds in Vijay Hazare Trophy but missed out on the landmark as Rajasthan Royals and Assam all-rounder Riyan Parag dismissed him in the 45th over of the Maharashtra innings. The Chennai Super Kings opener Gaikwad now has 552 runs in just 4 matches in Vijay Hazare Trophy this season with three hundreds and a strike-rate of 122.

The Maharashtra captain created a List A record by hammering 43 runs in one over, including 7 sixes off the bowling of Uttar Pradesh left-arm spinner Shiva Singh.

Maharashtra teammate Azim Kazi, in fact, recalled similarities between CSK captain MS Dhoni and Gaikwad. Dhoni had paid a visit to the Maharashtra dressing room when they were playing a game in Ranchi, according to The Indian Express newspaper. Kazi said that when he saw Dhoni having a conversation he felt as if Gaikwad was speaking.

Ruturaj Gaikwad. That's it. That's the tweet. #VijayHazareTrophy2022 pic.twitter.com/0HE2r0zzlL https://t.co/aek2wKmYIY — Lucknow Super Giants (@LucknowIPL) November 28, 2022

“Actually, when Dhoni bhai was speaking, it literally felt like it was Gaikwad. The things he said, was similar to what Rutu has been telling us. Since he has been part of CSK, he has been able to interact with Dhoni bhai and he is passing to us, but for sure there are a few similarities. We all have read and heard how Dhoni bhai operates the team and that is what Gaikwad has been doing here,” Kazi told the Indian Express newspaper.

Kazi added that the Maharashtra players have a lot to learn from Ruturaj Gaikwad. “He has become our everything. We are getting to learn new things. He has changed the total set-up and how we prepare ourselves. We are together as a team even in the hotel. For instance, he has left his hotel room open at all times and we can go and seek his help for anything. If a player is struggling, he is the first one to point it out off the field and say how to rectify it. What is more impressive is his gameplan and how he has identified a role for everyone and uses us judiciously,” Kazi said about Ruturaj.

Thanks to Gaikwad’s ton and a brilliant 110 off 89 balls by Ankit Bawne, Maharashtra posted 350/7 after batting first against Assam in the semifinal.