"Kidhar tha re tu? Kitna dhoonda tereko!" - CSK fans rejoice as Ruturaj Gaikwad slams classy 73 against GT in IPL 2022

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opener Ruturaj Gaikwad finally found some much-needed form at his home ground in Pune against the Gujarat Titans (GT) on Sunday. The 25-year-old played a fantastic knock of 73 off just 48 balls and helped his IPL team get to a fighting total.

Coming into the game against the Titans, Gaikwad was under a bit of pressure, having scored just 35 runs in the first five games. However, the opener showed exactly why CSK had retained him.

Fans on Twitter were ecstatic to see Ruturaj Gaikwad back in form as they believe he is too good a player to miss out on the big runs. Here are some of the reactions:

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Ruturaj Gaikwad's classy 73 takes CSK to 169/5

GT were without the services of Hardik Pandya and stand-in captain Rashid Khan was happy to win the toss and bowl first. Chennai didn't get to the best of starts as they lost the in-form Robin Uthappa for just three. Moeen Ali's poor form continued and CSK were two wickets down inside the powerplay.

This was when Ruturaj Gaikwad stepped up and began to up the ante. The 25-year-old got good support from the other end in Ambati Rayudu and the duo scored quick runs. Gaikwad brought up his first 50 of IPL 2022 and added 92 runs for the third wicket with Rayudu.

But just when it looked like CSK would take off to reach the 180-run mark, the GT bowlers pulled things back to an extent. Alzarri Joseph struck with Rayudu's wicket and Gaikwad was dismissed by Yash Dayal after trying to play the flick over deep square leg.

Last game's hero Shivam Dube couldn't quite find his timing initially. But some late blows from Ravindra Jadeja helped CSK cross the 160-run mark as they ended up with 169/5.

Although 170 looks like a reachable score, the Titans are without the services of Pandya, the batter. They will once again depend on Shubman Gill to provide them with a flying start.

CSK, on the other hand, will take confidence from their bowling performance in the last game and look to get their second win of the season.

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