‘Injured’ Gaikwad seen playing football with Dhoni and others, Fans wonder whether he was actually forced out

Ruturaj Gaikwad, CSK captain, has suffered an elbow fracture and will not play any more games in IPL 2025. The season so far has not gone well for the men in yellow so far. After winning their opening match against the Mumbai Indians, the Chennai Super Kings have been trounced by teams consistently. They have lost 4 matches on the trot.

Dhoni the captain

With the exit of Gaikwad for the season, Fleming announced that it will be MS Dhoni who will be leading the team for the rest of the tournament. Dhoni comes back to captain CSK after a long period, as Ruturaj has been a constant feature in the team and has led the franchise. However, he suffered a blow to his left elbow recently. The fracture has caused him to be ruled out for the remainder of the season.

Because of these circumstances, Dhoni has found his way back as the captain of the side, for what could possibly be his last season as a player.

Gaikwad really injured?

The tenacity of the Gaikwad injury story was questioned on Friday, ahead of the toss between CSK and KKR. Gaikwad was seen playing football with Dhoni and other CSK team members. Moreover, he did not seem to have any difficulty in playing and was not seen with any protection for his elbow. Fans have started speculating whether Gaikwad really suffered an injury or was forced out because of the poor performance of the team.

Gaikwad’s statement

Gaikwad said in a video, “I am really gutted to miss the rest of the IPL due to an unfortunate elbow injury. I want to thank everyone for your support so far, it truly means a lot. Yes, it’s been a challenging season, but we’ve got a young wicketkeeper leading the team now, and hopefully things will turn around. I’ll be right there with the squad, supporting them from the dugout. I would’ve loved to help lift the team out of this situation, but some things are simply out of our control. Looking forward to backing the boys for the rest of the campaign, here’s to a strong finish to the season.”

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