Chennai Super Kings skipper MS Dhoni feels it is important for the youngsters to step in for the team and lauded Ruturaj Gaikwad for his astonishing knock against Gujarat Titans in the inaugural match of the 16th edition of Indian Premier League.

Chennai Super Kings lost their first match against Gujarat Titans by 5 wickets, speaking after the loss to the Hardik Pandya’s side. CSK skipper MS Dhoni,  on the post-match interaction, admitted that the batsmen failed to capitalize on the solid start and stressed the batsmen should have scored a few more runs for the team and also praised Gaikwad for his phenomenal knock in the league opener.

“We all knew there will be dew. We could have done a bit more with the batsman ship. Ruturaj (Gaikwad) was brilliant, he times the ball well and he’s a pleasure to watch. The way he picks his options is pleasing to watch. I think it’s important for the youngsters to step in,” MS Dhoni said.

Apart from Ruturaj Gaikwad, none of the CSK batters could score for the four-time champions with Ambati Rayudu and Shivam Dube found completely out of touch struggling to score for the team.  Ruturaj scored 92 runs off 50 balls while the rest of the batters just managed 78 off 71, adding to their woes CSK was able to score only 85 runs in 10 overs.

Rajvardhan Hangargekar Will Get Better With Time –  CSK Skipper MS Dhoni

MS Dhoni was impressed by Rajvardhan Hangargekar who claimed three wickets in his debut in Indian Premier League and said that he will get better with time and added that playing two left-arm spinners was also in the plan so they went ahead with Mitchell Santer and Ravindra Jadeja. Speaking about Hangargekar,

“I think Raj (Hangargekar) has pace and he will get better with time. Think the bowlers will get better, a no-ball is something that’s in your control, so you need to work on that. I felt two left-arm spinners will be a better option so I went ahead with them. Shivam (Dube) was an option, but I felt comfortable with the bowlers overall,” MS Dhoni said.

Hangargekar who was very impressive during their U19 days finally made his IPL debut and lived up to the expectation. He showed excellent composure under pressure and ended up with three wickets. The 20-year-old is still definitely raw and made a few silly errors but is touted to have a breakthrough season this year.