A calm hundred by Shubman Gill carried the Gujarat Titans through to the IPL 2026 final, overcoming the Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets during Friday's Qualifier 2 clash. In pursuit of 215, he reached 104 from only 53 balls, 15 boundaries along with three towering hits clearing the ropes, as GT seized control and finished strong.

Outshone by Gill’s performance was Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s sharp 96, a composed effort that lifted Rajasthan Royals to 214/6. Still, Gujarat brushed aside the chase, fueled heavily by an unyielding start from Gill alongside Sai Sudharsan.

Shubman Gill reveals GT’s big-match mantra

Looking back at the victory, Shubman Gill mentioned that the team plays strongest when it stays clear of pressure from big moments.

“The feeling is really good. But there’s a quick turnaround, so tomorrow we’ll just rest, recover and assess the conditions,” Gill said after the match.

“If you don't play the occasion, it brings the best out of us. That’s what we spoke about - taking the occasion out and just playing good cricket. Whether we win or lose, we should play good cricket.”

This time next year, the IPL final pits Royal Challengers Bengaluru against Gujarat Titans once more - déjà vu from Qualifier 1, when last season's winners powered past their rivals by 92 runs.

Faster than expected, GT’s innings took shape through a 167-run stand at the top, Shubman Gill steady throughout, while Sai Sudharsan pushed hard until losing his wicket awkwardly again, just like last match. This time too, it ended with him dislodging the stumps himself after making 58.

“We complement each other really well. Our communication while batting is very good. One of us takes on a particular bowler, and we are very good at deciding who to target,” Shubman Gill explained.

Speaking about Sudharsan’s unusual dismissal, Shubman Gill joked: “I don’t think anyone has seen that happen in two games. I saw some videos on social media about taping his hands, and maybe I’ll have to do that.”
Gill went on to say his attention stayed fixed on ending the pursuit alone.
“I was in that kind of zone where I was just looking at the gaps and the bowler, trying to hit in my areas. When you’re batting well, you see the gaps clearly and middle everything,” he said.

“At one stage, we thought we could restrict them to around 180-190, but they got 214. We knew we needed a strong start. I wanted to finish the game, but got out.”

On a pitch that made scoring easy, Rajasthan Royals’ skipper Riyan Parag thought they came up just less, maybe 20 or so runs light. Though the field invited big shots, their total didn’t quite stick. He saw it clearly: too little, even on friendly turf.
“It was a defendable score, but after the heavy roller, the pitch became better in the second innings. In the first innings, the bowlers got some grip, and slower deliveries worked well. I felt 230 was par, and around 240 would have been challenging,” Parag said.

What stood out was how Parag highlighted Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s calm approach, seeing his knock as less about wild swings and more like a steady climb. Instead of rushing through moments, the young batter seemed to pause, choose, then act, something that clearly left an impression.

“I can’t put it into words. There’s one way where you slog and score runs, but he doesn’t slog. You could see today how he calculated his innings and picked his shots,” Parag said.
“I hope he continues to do well in his career, performs for Rajasthan Royals and helps us win a second title.”

Even after losing, Parag gave credit to his inexperienced team for going further than expected, making it into the playoffs, which surprised many. A solid run, considering how new most of them are.

“To sum it up in one sentence, there were many positives. We weren’t expected to qualify because many players were young and inexperienced, but several youngsters performed really well and will only improve from here,” he added.

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