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MS Dhoni & Ruturaj Gaikwad (Source: Twitter)
Ruturaj Gaikwad is currently touring South Africa as the right-hander has been picked in all three formats to represent India in the Rainbow Nation. The opening batter rose to prominence with his impressive stint with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the last three seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He became an integral part of the franchise under the leadership of MS Dhoni and was even considered to be his successor in the captaincy role.
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Ahead of India's third and final ODI against South Africa at Boland Park in Paarl on Thursday, Gaikwad was asked to name his current favourite cricketers in an interview with Star Sports. He picked three players and to everyone's surprise, there was no mention of legendary cricketer Dhoni or his CSK teammates.
Of the three players, two are currently playing international cricket while the other has retired from all formats of the game. Two Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) superstars Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers and New Zealand's talisman Kane Williamson are his favourites. Notably, de Villiers stopped donning the South African jersey in 2018 and retired from IPL in 2021.
"Actually, I admire a lot of cricketers. Virat Kohli is there, Kane Williamson is there and AB de Villiers is there, so there are quite a few," Gaikwad told the broadcaster.
Meanwhile, when asked about his cricketing idol while growing up, the 26-year-old named Dhoni as one of them. Here again, Gaikwad chose three cricketers, the other two being Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli.
Gaikwad misses IND vs SA series decider
India and South Africa are currently locking horns in the third ODI at Boland Park. With the three-match series tied at 1-1, this match will decide the winner. Gaikwad, who failed to shine in the first two matches, unfortunately missed out on the encounter due to an injury to his finger. Skipper KL Rahul mentioned during the toss that the CSK opener is dealing with an issue with his finger.
"This looks like a much better wicket than the previous two, hopefully, we can get plenty of runs on the board. Two changes - Rajat Patidar makes his ODI debut, Rutu misses out after doing some damage to his finger. Also, Kuldeep gets a rest and Yuzi Chahal comes in," Rahul said.