MUMBAI, May 5 -- Ruturaj Gaikwad stands out for his ability to match the best. In the limited chances he has had to play for India, the batter hasn't looked out of place in white-ball cricket. Batting alongside the likes of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma, he is equally pleasing to watch for his stroke play. The current Indian team management under coach Gautam Gambhir recognises that he is a rare talent. They went out of their way to make a place for him in the one-day side against South Africa at the end of last year. Although he is a regular opener, since there was no berth available as Rohit Sharma and Yashasvi Jaiswal were playing, he was slotted in at No.4. Against South Africa in Raipur, playing only the eighth innings of his career, the stylish Maharashtra batter caressed an 83-ball 105. He raised a 195-run partnership with Kohli during the innings and looked the part, matching the latter in aesthetic appeal. Equally, his T20I hundred, a 57-ball 123 (SR 215.78) against a strong Australia side in 2023 at Guwahati also stood out. CSK blooded him in the 2020 IPL. In his four full IPL seasons he has scored over 580 runs three times and 368 runs once. He is CSK's third highest run-getter-after MS Dhoni and Suresh Raina - with an aggregate of 2,747 (avg 39.81, SR 136.33) in 80 matches. This has been a tough season though with the weight of captaincy adding to the pressure on Gaikwad. In the first seven games he didn't make a meaningful contribution. His highest was a 22-ball 28 against PBKS. To the relief of the CSK fans, he has showed signs of regaining form in the last three games. After a brisk 14-ball 22 against MI came a 60-ball 74* against GT, but it was in a losing cause. He finally ticked the boxes on Saturday, leading CSK to victory over MI. His calculated 48-ball 67* led the team to only their fourth win. The pressure was immediately on the captain when in-form opening partner Sanju Samson was out early. The captain had his task cut out. Gaikwad showed his quality, underlining the franchise had picked him as Dhoni's heir. "Feels good to bat till the end. I was feeling confident. But in T20s you can hit good shots straight to fielders. I wanted to make sure I took the team to the end," Gaikwad, player of the match, said. Gaikwad's unbeaten 98-run partnership with Kartik was the highlight. Urvil Patel and Ramakrishna Ghosh, also new to IPL, too made their presence felt....