![Ruturaj Gaikwad scored a century for India A [Source: X and Screengrab]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1780993773671_RuturajGaikwadTR.jpg?type=hq)
Ruturaj Gaikwad scored a century for India A [Source: X and Screengrab]
Ruturaj Gaikwad marked his return to the India A side with a scintillating century against Sri Lanka A in the Tri-series opener on June 9, 2026. Thus, he delivered a powerful response to his recent exclusion from the senior Indian ODI squad for the Afghanistan series on home soil.
The right-hander held the innings together with a composed 101-run knock off 114 balls, rescuing India A from a shaky 69 for 3 and powering them to a competitive 277 for 6 in 50 overs.
Ruturaj Gaikwad proves his mettle yet again
Ruturaj Gaikwad walked in to bat when India A were in deep trouble. The team had lost both openers, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Prabhsimran Singh, with just 16 runs on the board.
Gaikwad responded with an innings of patience, class, and quiet defiance. He stitched together a 150-run partnership with captain Tilak Varma for the fourth wicket.
His knock featured six boundaries and three sixes, and he reached his hundred before finally falling to Wanuja Sahan in the 44th over.
Gaikwad’s name had been conspicuously missing from the Indian squad that toured Sri Lanka and later played white-ball series against South Africa and New Zealand.
Despite leading India to an Asian Games gold medal and scoring a fluent 105 against South Africa in his last ODI outing, the BCCI selection committee overlooked him for the upcoming series against Afghanistan.
Also Read- Ruturaj Gaikwad Makes BCCI Regret After India vs Afghanistan Series Snub
In fact, when Virat Kohli was ruled out of the ODI series due to a hamstring injury, the BCCI selection committee picked opening batter Yashasvi Jaiswal as his replacement, ignoring Gaikwad, who is more versatile than the southpaw.
A modest IPL 2026 season, 337 runs at an average of 28.08, had perhaps given the selectors a reason to look elsewhere. But the India A assignment offered Gaikwad the perfect stage to remind everyone of his quality in the 50-over format.
Gaikwad Anchors India A’s Recovery
On a day when the young prodigy Sooryavanshi failed to fire, Gaikwad displayed the maturity that comes with over 150 international appearances across formats for India. He rotated the strike beautifully, respected the good deliveries, and punished the loose ones.
The partnership with Tilak Varma, who made a gritty 60, took the game away from Sri Lanka A. Even after Gaikwad’s departure, Ayush Badoni and Suryansh Shedge added quick runs to push the total of 277.
Internet Erupts in Support of Ruturaj Gaikwad
Fans and former cricketers flooded social media with messages of support for Gaikwad, many calling out the BCCI selection committee for ignoring a proven performer as a replacement for Virat Kohli in the ODI squad against Afghanistan instead of Yashasvi Jaiswal.
Let’s take a look at how the internet reacted:
Gaikwad Ready To Prove His Point for India
Gaikwad’s century will not erase the disappointment of the repeated snubs, but it does reassert his credentials as a top-order stalwart.
With the Tri-series still in its early stages and more matches against Sri Lanka A and Afghanistan A to come, he has every chance to pile on the runs and make his case impossible to ignore again.
For a player who has often been the quiet accumulator while others grabbed headlines, this century was a loud and clear message, one that he would like to repeat against Afghanistan A too on June 11.
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.jpg?type=mq "Ruturaj Gaikwad Makes BCCI Regret")
