‘Another long way to go’: Ruturaj Gaikwad reveals what he learned from the 5 -month layout | Cricket news

New Delhi: Ruturaj Gaikwad thought about how he used his layoff almost five months to work on his red ball game, although the India’s striker admitted that he always had “a long way to go” in the traditional format despite the start of the season strongly.Gaikwad injured the elbow in early April in an IPL 2025 match against the Royals of Rajasthan, cutting his passage as a skipper of Chennai Super Kings. The reverse also excluded it from India a series against the Lions of England in front of the Anderson-Tendulkar trophy. He then retired from a county contract with Yorkshire for personal reasons.Despite the disappointment, Gaikwad has found positive points in the forced break.“I had a good time to prepare myself, especially after not being part of the India series. And then after this return, I decided to work on my red ball game, to give it a little time and to work obviously always on it, another long way to go, “he said after having marked 184 for West Zone on the opening day of the semi-final of the Duleep trophy against the central zone.The effort followed its century against the Himachal Pradesh in the Buchi Babu invitation tournament, marking its second successive resistance.Upon his return after the break, Gaikwad admitted that it was not easy.“Not really. In fact, it was simply a question of following the process. The red ball game actually needed a lot of patience, a lot of processes to follow and it was simply a question of entering this rhythm. And you know, I did it for almost a, a month and a half and obviously Buchi Babu too, then it happened here too,” he said.He added that the time far from the cricket had given him mental calm and the possibility of spending quality time with family.“I mean, nobody would like to have a time with injured family. It was a very dynamic injury and nothing can do it. So, I just enjoyed my time at home, then obviously trying to enter the rhythm, to get into the game routines, you know, to do little things and I really liked the process throughout.”The 28 -year -old also adapted to the shot at No. 4, a role he often plays for the Maharashtra and sometimes for CSK.“I will not say that it’s 2.0 because, you know, I think that in White Ball, I have always opened but in Red Ball, there was only one place available in the Maharashtra when I joined the team. So, I think it was the only place available. Whenever you know, there were two appropriate openers, I always played three. So, certainly, there were no real places for me, but now obviously, I feel that I am really comfortable there, “he said.His composure was obvious in the semi-finals when, walking at 10 for two, he stabilized the western area with a hundred hundred.“I thought it was a good challenge to be a part because, obviously, three quick quisors (central area), you know, with a large set of skills and be able to face them, to be able to mark races against them would be a great challenge. This is what I thought and, obviously, I stick to it and I am really happy that it took place, “he added.Gaikwad also praised Tanush Kotian, with whom he shared a 148 -point stand for the sixth window.“He always beats very well. He has the gift of scoring races. He has a good Mumbai brain, really intelligent and knows when to score races, knows when to absorb the pressure. So, you know, he has always done in front of me and even today, he beat very well,” he said.Recently, Ms. Dhoni said that Gaikwad’s return would strengthen CSK’s striker in IPL 2026, a Gaikwad remark welcomed.“He, support was still there. There was nothing shy and, obviously, you know, I miss this tournament, then later have replacements (Ayush Mhatre, Shaikh Rasheed, etc.).