Uncapped Gems – Part 3:

Ruturaj Gaikwad: Just 2 runs short of Kohli in 2021 IPL, but earn just over 2 percent of what Kohli gets in salary contract for this year.

In continuation to the series on the uncapped Indian domestic players, who got their performance noticed in the first leg of the 14th edition of the IPL --- before the league got suspended due to COVID --- I am writing about Maharashtra’s first class cricketer Ruturaj Gaikwad. The 24-year-old right-hand batsman Gaikwad is playing in his second IPL. He was bought in the players’ auction by the Chennai Super Kings in 2019, but he didn’t get a chance to play in his first year.

The third in the series of the ‘Uncapped Gems’ is batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Gaikwad, who opens for Chennai Super Kings, had scored 196 runs in seven matches with a strike rate of 128.94. His highest inning total in the 2021 season is 75 runs and had two half-century to his credit. In the most run getters list of 2021 IPL, Gaikwad is placed at 16th position, a notch behind Indian skipper Virat Kohli. Kohli, who is at 15th position of the 2021 most run getters list, scored 198 runs in 7 matches with a strike rate of 121.47. His highest innings total is 72 not out.

But when it comes to IPL salary contracts, Gaikwad is nowhere near Kohli.

Gaikwad was retained by CSK for a salary contract of Rs 40 lakhs, while Indian skipper is the highest paid cricketer of the 2021 IPL. Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Kohli’s salary contract for this year is for Rs 17 crore.       

Gaikwad, who hails from Pune, made his Ranji trophy debut for Maharashtra in 2016-17 season. He also played for India U-23 and for India A, but he is yet to get a chance to represent the Indian seniors’ squad.  

After the 2021 IPL performance there are chances that for the next year, he will get a better deal by the franchises in terms of monetary gains.