Gujarat Titans were one of the most cash-strapped teams in the IPL 2026 auction. They had retained most of their core from the last season and had only a few crucial spots to fill.
It’s hard to say if they would be happy with their picks. Given that their needs were mostly around the middle-order, they signed only two players for those roles: Jason Holder for their auction-best of Rs. 7 crore and Tom Banton, who has only recently transitioned to the role, in the third accelerated round for Rs. 2 crore.
Apart from that, they signed three fast bowlers: uncapped options Ashok Sharma and Prithvi Raj, and England and ex-Mumbai Indian man Luke Wood. The trio will almost certainly have to be content with sitting behind the plethora of pace bowling options already
available at GT.
That means that GT’s playing 11 will boast a similar look to last season. Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler will form the top three. Washington Sundar will have to shoulder the middle-order role, and GT will have to give consistent chances to the superstar Glenn Phillips after ignoring him for most of the 2024 season and then seeing him get injured this year.
Holder would have to be the direct replacement for Sherfane Rutherford, who GT traded to the Mumbai Indians, although their roles are completely different. The Titans will also need Rahul Tewatia to step up despite not having played much cricket of late, because they didn’t sign a good backup.
Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj will lead the pace attack, while Rashid Khan and R Sai Kishore will do the same for the spin department. Kagiso Rabada will likely start the season on the bench, but there might be games where GT throw him in the right for Phillips and trust their all-rounder’s batting abilities.
GT Full Squad For IPL 2026
Shubman Gill (C), Jos Buttler, Mohammed Siraj, Rashid Khan, B Sai Sudharsan, Anuj Rawat, Glenn Phillips, Gurnoor Brar, Ishant Sharma, Jayant Yadav, Kagiso Rabada, Kumar Kushagra, Manav Suthar, Arshad Khan, Nishant Sindhu, Prasidh Krishna, R Sai Kishore, Rahul Tewatia, M Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Ashok Sharma (Rs. 90 lakh), Jason Holder (Rs. 7 crore), Tom Banton (Rs. 2 crore), Prithvi Raj (Rs. 30 lakh), Luke Wood (Rs. 75 lakh)
GT Best Playing XI For IPL 2026
Shubman Gill (C), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (WK), Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips/Kagiso Rabada, Jason Holder, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Prasidh Krishna, and Mohammed Siraj.
Impact player: M Shahrukh Khan/Ashok Sharma
