Winning More Important Than 99 Or 100, Says Ruturaj Gaikwad

Chennai Super Kings opener Ruturaj Gaikwad has said that getting out on 99 is always painful, but the fact that he contributed to the win against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the MCA Stadium on Sunday made him forget the disappointment.

Gaikwad's 99 off 57 balls and an equally belligerent unbeaten 85 off 55 by Devon Conway helped the defending champions notch 202/2 and then restricted SRH to 189/6 for a 13-run victory. Gaikwad was out in the 18th over as he tried to cut a slower length ball angled away from him. But he failed to keep it down, giving an easy catch to Bhuvneshwar Kumar at backward point. He and Conway stitched together a record-breaking 182-run partnership in the game.

"Getting out on 99 made me a little sad, but I am happy that I was able to contribute to a win. Whether it's 99 or 100, winning the game is important," Gaikwad, who was the orange cap winner in CSK's title campaign last year, said.

"It's always special to score big at your home ground, but more importantly, I'm happy because I contributed towards the team's win," Gaikwad said in an interview on iplt20.com. "It felt good to play well in front of family and friends.

"There was no pressure of performing in front of family and friends, but I wanted to make them proud. Doing well in front of them is a big achievement. I was waiting for the moment and, thankfully, it happened," he added.

The right-hand batter further heaped praise on Conway, saying he enjoyed batting with the Kiwi.

"I enjoyed batting with Devon. I am delighted for him as it was only his second match and he scored his maiden IPL fifty. We haven't played together much, but we spend a lot of time in my room. Hence, we got to know about each other's game, how we communicate and how we react to certain situations on the field," he said.

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"We already had off-field conversations and, thankfully, we shared a very good partnership," said Gaikwad.