IPL 2025: Ruturaj Gaikwad ruled out of remainder of the season, MS Dhoni to return as captain

Coach Stephen Fleming confirmed MS Dhoni will replace Ruturaj Gaikwad as CSK skipper.

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have received a massive blow amidst the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 as their skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad has been ruled out of remainder of the season. The CSK skipper has been ruled out due to an elbow fracture.

Notably, Gaikwad was injured during an earlier clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in IPL 2025. During the encounter, pacer Tushar Deshpande’s delivery hit him on the elbow. He played two games following that injury. However, now he has been ruled out of remainder of the tournament.

MS Dhoni to lead CSK in Gaikwad’s absence

Interestingly, the five-time title-winning captain MS Dhoni is set to lead CSK in IPL 2025 after ouster of Gaikwad. Dhoni had handed over the captaincy to Gaikwad ahead of IPL 2024. CSK confirmed the news on their official account on X (formerly Twitter).

“Ruturaj Gaikwad ruled out of the season due to a hairline fracture of the elbow. MS DHONI TO LEAD. GET WELL SOON, RUTU !,” CSK posted on X.

CSK head coach Stephen Fleming also confirmed to reporters in a press conference that Gaikwad is out of the tournament and Dhoni will take the reins of the side for the rest of the matches.

“So we are disappointed and feel for him. We appreciate the efforts that he’s gone to in terms of trying to play, but unfortunately, he’d be out of the tournament from now. We have an uncapped player, MS Dhoni, who will take over as captain for the remainder of the IPL,” the CSK head coach said.

Dhoni will take charge of the side from CSK’s next match of the season, which is against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Friday, April 11. The encounter will take place at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.

Interestingly, this is not the first time something like this has happened in the CSK franchise. Two days before the start of IPL 2022, Dhoni handed over the captaincy to Ravindra Jadeja. However, Jadeja left the role mid-season and handed over the captaincy back to Dhoni, who led the side in the remaining games. However, after giving up captaincy, Jadeja was ruled out of the tournament with rib injury.

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