Does Ruturaj Gaikwad Feel Threatened by Sanju Samson? Vaughan & Doull Think So

Michael Vaughan and Simon Doull questioned Ruturaj Gaikwad’s equation with Sanju Samson at CSK, suggesting that the skipper might be feeling threatened amid CSK’s poor start in IPL 2026.

Ruturaj Gaikwad faces mounting pressure after the Chennai Super Kings began the IPL 2026 season with 2 defeats. The captain has not delivered with the bat so far. CSK entered the season aiming to recover from a last-place finish in 2025, but early results have raised concerns.

The bowling unit has struggled for wickets, while the new opening pair has not clicked. Sanju Samson, brought in through a trade, has also failed in the first 2 matches despite his strong T20 World Cup run.

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Michael Vaughan and Simon Doull highlighted a possible leadership tension within the squad. They pointed to the added pressure on Ruturaj Gaikwad with Sanju Samson’s presence.

“What about the captain, Gaikwad? Do you think he feels threatened [by Samson]?” Vaughan asked Doull, during a discussion on Cricbuzz.

“Absolutely,” Duoll responded.

“So that’s another kind of dynamic that you’re looking at. [One of the league’s] youngest captains Gaikwad, he’s done it a bit now and you kind of go, ‘Go on, we’re gonna back you, you’re the captain. But by the way, we’re signing Sanju, who’s a very good captain and he’s a keeper. And guess what? We’ve had a keeper who was a captain for a long period of time and did very well, and we’re gonna try and replace him. But you carry on captaining and hope it doesn’t affect you,” Vaughan added.

In their match against PBKS, Punjab Kings defeated Chennai Super Kings by 5 wickets. They chased 210 in 18.4 overs and finished at 210/5. Priyansh Arya attacked early with 39 off 11. Prabhsimran Singh scored 43 off 34. Cooper Connolly added 36 off 22. Captain Shreyas Iyer led with 50 off 29. Shashank Singh stayed unbeaten on 14 off 6. Marcus Stoinis contributed 9 off 3.

For CSK, Matt Henry took 2 for 54. Anshul Kamboj picked 2 for 43 in 3.4 overs. In the first innings, Chennai posted 209/5 in 20 overs. Ayush Mhatre top-scored with 73 off 43. He added 96 runs with Ruturaj Gaikwad. CSK has now lost 6 straight home games. They remain winless after 2 matches in IPL 2026.