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In the IPL 2026 match against Punjab Kings (PBKS), Gujarat Titans` (GT) skipper Shubman Gill has won the toss and elected to bowl first at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
After winning the toss, GT`s skipper Gill said, “We`re gonna bowl first. I think we have been chasing well in the past few games and our bowling has been top-notch, so we thought we`ll continue with the momentum. (Middle-order performing in the last game) Yeah, definitely in the last match, we spoke about our middle-order finishing the game and I think our Rahul bhai, batting in the middle, it was magnificent [to] watch and him finishing the game was exactly what we talked about. (What do you make of pitch?) Yeah, I think initially to start with there`s something in it for the bowlers, particularly on this kind of a wicket. So hopefully we`ll also see how it pans out. (What mark would you give the GT so far this season?) I think it`s all about, especially in a tournament like IPL, such a long tournament, it`s all about peaking at the right time and I think we are doing that. And I still feel our best game is yet to come, so I hopefully it`s gonna be this one. (No changes?) One change – Nishant Sindhu makes his debut”.
On the other hand, PBKS` captain Shreyas Iyer said, “It (the pitch) looks beautiful. Some grass on the wicket and probably would extract a little bit of bounce considering it`s the black soil. Pretty much unusual, but yeah we have played on this wicket before, but it looks beautiful. (Do you tinker with your side for tonight?) Yes, X (Xavier) comes in and Vyshak comes in as well in the bowling side. But apart from that, I feel that it`s not frustration, it`s just that you have learning in every game. And it`s an intense league, honestly speaking. We travel, we have to come up fresh for the next game. So it takes a lot of efforts in the practice session as well. It`s just that we haven`t been able to execute the way we were supposed to, but it`s just another game right now and we will see to it that we put our best foot forward and execute to the best of our abilities”.
Fresh from the victory over Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), it will be interesting to see if the Gill-led Titans manage to continue riding on their winning momentum tonight against the Kings.
IPL 2026, Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings: Confirmed Playing XIs
Gujarat Titans: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (C), Jos Buttler (WK), Nishant Sandhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar.
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (WK), Priyansh Arya, Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (C), Suryansh Shedge, Nehal Wadhera, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
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