“Whom will he replace?” – Ravichandran Ashwin on Ruturaj Gaikwad’s Team India dilemma

Ravichandran Ashwin has praised opening batter Ruturaj Gaikwad for his superb performances in the domestic circuit for Maharashtra. He, however, expressed concerns regarding his place in Team India.

He said that a couple of batters are already in the fray to replace Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma in the future, including Rishabh Pant. It's worth mentioning that KL Rahul is also a specialist opener.

Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin said about Gaikwad:

“Since he is from India, whom will he replace? Not even replace but look at whom he is competing with. Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, Shubman Gill, and we have Rishabh Pant opening as well.”

Gaikwad amassed 660 runs in five games at a staggering average of 220 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, including four centuries. Earlier, he scored 295 runs in six games in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 trophy. Ashwin, though, said that Gaikwad has a very bright future.

“India is becoming a difficult country to genuinely play cricket. I mean, competition for one spot is heating up. And Ruturaj is not heating it up; he has taken the solar panel on his head and scored runs for fun. Amazing, very well done, Ruturaj Gaikwad.”

He added:

“I am sure all the CSK fans are super happy. It will be a matter of time before Ruturaj Gaikwad sets the world stage on fire.”

The MS Dhoni-led CSK francihse has retained Gaikwad in IPL 2023 for ₹6 crore. The opener has scored 1,207 runs in 36 games, including a ton and ten half-centuries.

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“I feel it’s not right if we criticise our own players” – Ravichandran Ashwin

Ashwin, meanwhile, reckons Indians are way too critical of their players. He took the example of Virat Kohli and explained how fans in other countries like England would go to every length and breadth to ensure Joe Root is their greatest player, but people in India might question the same standing about Kohli.

Ashwin said:

“In England, they will openly say Joe Root is their greatest player. They will fight with fans who will argue for Williamson, Virat Kohli, and other country fans.

He continued:

“Whereas only in India, we will have fans fighting among our own country’s players. I don’t know if we should do that. I feel it’s not right if we criticise our own country players.”

Kohli will be in action against Bangladesh in the first ODI in Dhaka on Sunday (December 4).