Chennai Super Kings' head coach, Stephen Fleming, believes that captain Ruturaj Gaikwad shares a similar batting style to MS Dhoni, and labeling Gaikwad as "slow" is unjust.

Taking over the captaincy from Dhoni at the start of this IPL season, Ruturaj Gaikwad has had a mixed performance, losing two matches on the road but winning three at home. However, the 27-year-old has faced criticism for his "slow" pace while batting.

In his five matches, the right-handed opener has scored 155 runs at a strike rate of 117.42.

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Fleming gives his verdict on Ruturaj Gaikwad

“There's no difference. He's as cool as it gets. I know the last captain was pretty cool. But this guy is cut from the same cloth, so that's rubbed through,” Stephen Fleming said when asked if he had any discussion with Gaikwad in terms of differentiating between his leadership and his batting.

“He is such an impressive young man around his game and what he needs to do. He's been, I think, unfairly put into a bracket where he's been called slow. But you have to have context to some of these stats,” Fleming told the media during CSK’s training session at the Wankhede Stadium.

“We know that it's a bit of a Bollywood movie, sometimes getting these things up onto the screen. But he's fine. He's playing conditions well. The last game (CSK vs KKR) was a great example of how a leader plays, and there's class as well. I have absolutely no doubt about Ruturaj,” Fleming added.

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In the current IPL season, CSK has faced two losses in as many away games, indicating a struggle away from home so far. While they've secured three wins out of five matches overall, their next challenges are away matches in Mumbai and Lucknow before returning to Chepauk in 15 days. The question remains: can they maintain their winning form on the road against formidable opponents?

(With PTI inputs)