Chennai Super Kings (CSK) captain Ruturaj Gaikwad has unexpectedly ended his county cricket stint with Yorkshire and returned to India due to personal reasons. The decision comes just days before Yorkshire’s County Championship clash against Surrey, scheduled to begin on Tuesday, July 22, at the North Marine Road Ground in Scarborough.
The 28-year-old batter, who was recently part of India A’s squad for two unofficial Tests against the England Lions, was expected to continue playing for Yorkshire for the remainder of the season.
However, Yorkshire head coach Anthony McGrath confirmed that Gaikwad has pulled out.
“Unfortunately, Gaikwad’s not coming now for personal reasons. We’re not going to have him for Scarborough or for the rest of the season. I can’t tell you anything about the reasons why, but we hope that everything’s ok. We’ve literally just found out. We’re working behind the scenes on what we can do. But it’s only two or three days away, so I’m not sure what we can do at the moment,”
the official website of Yorkshire quoted McGrath as saying.
“We’re working to try and get a possible replacement, but time pressure is the issue. I can’t give you anything more than that at the moment,”
he added.
🏏 IPL 2025 Setback for Gaikwad and CSK
Gaikwad’s return to India comes just months after another setback. During the IPL 2025 season, he was ruled out due to a hairline fracture on his elbow, forcing former captain MS Dhoni to step in and lead the team once again.
The injury occurred during a clash against the Rajasthan Royals, where Gaikwad took a hit on the elbow. Although he continued to play through pain in the following match, he was later declared unfit for the rest of the tournament.
The absence of Gaikwad had a devastating effect on CSK’s campaign, as the franchise finished last on the points table—a first in their storied history.