Days before his planned debut, Indian batter Ruturaj Gaikwad has withdrawn from his County Championship stay with Yorkshire. The skipper of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) abruptly left the English domestic season citing to personal reasons, despite having signed a five-match contract last month.
Gaikwad’s absence was confirmed by Yorkshire head coach Anthony McGrath prior to their County Championship match against Surrey, the reigning champions, at Scarborough on July 22.
“Unfortunately, Gaikwad has personal reasons for not coming at this time. He will not be available for Scarborough or the remainder of the season. That is disappointing. We hope everything is alright, but I am unable to provide you with any information regarding the causes. Literally, we just learnt about it. Behind the scenes, we’re figuring out what we can do.
I’m not sure what we can do right now, though, because it’s just two or three days away. We’re trying to find a potential replacement, however the problem is time constraints. According to the Indian Express, Yorkshire head coach Anthony McGrath stated, “At this time, I am unable to provide you with anything more than that.”
The county club has not yet disclosed the cause of Ruturaj Gaikwad withdrawal. The batter from Maharashtra had stated how excited he was to participate in the English domestic season.
“I’m thrilled to be playing for Yorkshire for the remainder of the domestic English season. I’ve always wanted to play cricket in this country, and Yorkshire is the biggest club in England,” Ruturaj Gaikwad had stated.
Ruturaj Gaikwad was just added to the India A team’s England tour roster.
In the meantime, the batter has struggled in recent months with form and fitness. During the IPL 2025 season, he was leading CSK when he suffered a fractured elbow. He was out after just five games, averaging 24.40. He did not play in either of the two games against the England Lions, despite later being added to the India A team for the England tour.
He has amassed 2632 runs at an average of 41.77 in 38 First-Class cricket matches. In the 2024 India A tour of Australia, he made his final First-Class appearance, scoring a meagre 20 runs in four innings. He struck a century and 571 runs in 12 innings during the 2024–25 Indian domestic season.
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