Chennai Super Kings captain Ruturaj Gaikwad applauded his team’s fighting effort despite suffering a five-wicket defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Monday. The loss cost five-time champion CSK’s playoff hopes, while SRH booked their place in the IPL 2026 playoffs as well.

“Good game of cricket. We were in the game until the second-last over. Good T20 pitch. Didn’t change over the course of the game. Just missed out on a few. Just cashing in on the opportunity could have been done,” Gaikwad said after the match.

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Batting first, CSK posted 180/7 in 20 overs with Dewald Brevis top-scoring with 44 runs. Sanju Samson gave a strong start with a quick 27, while Kartik Sharma and Shivam Dube also scored some useful runs as well. However, SRH chased down the target comfortably through Ishan Kishan’s match-winning 70 and Heinrich Klaasen’s stunning 47-run knock.

“Still, given the team we had and the limited squad, I’m still proud and feel we did well. A lot of positives, to be honest,” he added. “Sanju has been playing really well for us. Missed out on a few key players. Obviously, it depends on a lot of factors. Everyone gave their heart out today, and I’m proud of the boys,” he said. “The crowd and the fans we have, they support us through thick and thin. Compared to last year, we were very much better this year.”

While talking about whether he can still build on this team going into next year, Ruturaj Gaikwad said, “Well, definitely. We are building up. I think a lot of positives, to be honest. Sanju’s addition is a great sign. He’s playing really well for us. Kartik Sharma, once again a great knock today. So, I think we are building. Obviously, missed out on a few players, a few key players who were part of the playing 12th. And I think after that, you have to look back and go, where can we find those exact replacements, yes or not? So obviously, it depends on a lot of factors, but still, given whatever squad we had, everyone gave their heart out today. And as I said, still proud of the boys.”