Chennai Super Kings (CSK) opener Ruturaj Gaikwad scored his maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) century on Saturday against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Abu Dhabi.
Gaikwad struck as many as nine fours and five sixes in his 60-ball 101 not out to make a mockery of Royals' bowling attack.
Needing five runs to score his first IPL century, Gaikwad launched Mustafizur Rahman for a massive six off the last ball of the 20th over.
After scoring the century, the right-handed batter said individual score doesn't matter to him, team score does.
"The wicket was holding up a bit initially, they started off well in the powerplay. My plan was to bat till the 13th or 14th over, so that I could capitalize on it later. I'm just looking to time the ball and maintain my shape. At the end of the day the team score matters. Individual score doesn't matter, unless and until your team is winning. We were looking for 160, then I thought 170, 180 and finally we got 190. I had timed that ball well and it was the shorter boundary, so I knew it was going to be a six. We need to bowl well and execute our plans," he said.
Meanwhile, Twitter users hailed Gaikwad after his century. "Remember the name.#RuturajGaikwad.Special player, made for greater things. Matter of time before he dominates World Cricket," tweeted Virender Sehwag. "The last ball six brought a joy on your face and ours too. Well done champ on your maiden Hundred points symbol in @IPL #RuturajGaikwad #CSKvRR #IPL2021," wrote Vinay Kumar.
Check out the tweets below:
