GT in 2026: Atypical, consistent and only a step short

Second on the points table and eventually runners' up, Gujarat Titans were outmatched twice by RCB in the Playoffs. Yet, they matched RCB in consistency across a tournament where most other teams endured sharp highs and lows.

Consistency has been the hallmark of the Titans ever since they entered the league in 2022 and won it in the first go. And just like the last two seasons, the headliners were Shubman Gill & Sai Sudharsan, ranked second and third on the Orange Cap list. Sudharsan hit eight fifties (the most by anyone), Gill hit six, with a century apiece for both. Just one step below them was Jos Buttler, with four fifties in tow.

But it wasn't just a two-man show: Titans were also statistically the best bowling attack of the season, led by Kagiso Rabada (Purple Cap winner) and Mohammed Siraj, who ensured early dents with the new ball. Rashid Khan returned to his best after an off-colour last season, while Jason Holder's inclusion proved to be a masterstroke. The only concern was Titans being looked at as a "template" team: in 210+ chases since 2025, they had lost seven out of seven, until they broke that jinx in Qualifier 2. The famed batting lineup, though, didn't quite turn up for the ultimate clash.

Kagiso Rabada

A Powerplay bruiser, Rabada took 20 wickets in Overs 1-6 alone, ending the season with more wickets than his last three IPL seasons combined. Aside from the Purple Cap, Rabada also bowled the joint-most dots (172), suggesting how difficult he was to score off. He took a three-for five times, and was particularly threatening on GT's home ground, not going wicketless in eight games there. Unfortunately for him, he ran into a red-hot Kohli in the final.

GT bowlers took the most wickets combined this season (118), making them the best bowling side of the competition on multiple counts. They had the best average (25.67), the best dot-ball percentage (39.9), the joint-most four-fors (three), and the best strike-rate (16.2). Goes to show how a well-rounded bowling attack is imperative for a great season.

Jason Holder hadn't played an IPL game for two seasons when he was picked for INR 7 Cr by the Titans. He had been taking wickets in bucketloads across T20 competitions elsewhere and took that form into his comeback IPL season too. The balance of the side turned drastically when Holder was brought in, controlling the middle overs with 17 wickets and an economy of under eight.

Aside from Holder, GT got four players at the auction, but only Ashok Sharma got game time, briefly turning heads with his raw pace. But his 150kph thunderbolts suddenly vanished six games in. They also splurged INR 2 Cr on Tom Banton, who had to miss the season due to a finger injury. Next time, they might want to shore up their middle-order batting resources with their auction money.

Trampled by RCB in Qualifier 1, GT needed a quick turnaround against RR. They conceded 214, largely due to boy wonder Vaibhav Sooryavanshi's 96, who kept them at bay even as others came and went. The target required them to bat out of their skins, given their poor chasing record, and the fact that they would have to pull off the biggest chase ever in a Playoff game. But Gill put on a flawless display, adding a 160-run opening stand with Sudharsan, and taking them through with a 47-ball hundred, the first by a captain in a Playoff game.

8/10. GT have shown that their team looks and works a certain way, but there's room for improvement in a flimsy middle-order that somehow didn't need showing up too often.