Gujarat Titans punched their ticket to the final of the IPL 2026 with their 7-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals at the PCA Stadium in Mullanpur in the second qualifier and will take on holders Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the coveted trophy in the summit clash on Sunday.
Shubman Gill’s 104-run knock and Sai Sudharsan’s half century helped GT chase down the target of 215 with 8 balls to spare.
RR won the toss and opted to bat, but Mohammed Siraj struck early to rattle Yashasvi Jaiswal for a single run in the first over, before Kagiso Rabada made further inroads with the scalp of Dhruv Jurel for 7 off 6 deliveries in the second over.
Ravindra Jadeja walked in to steady the innings alongside Vaibhav Sooryavanshi as the southpaw duo added runs to the scoreboard
with a flurry of boundaries. Jadeja retired hurt after adding 34 runs in just 19 deliveries due to discomfort before skipper Riyan Parag replaced the veteran batter. Parag chipped in with 11 runs off 6 deliveries as Jason Holder sent the opposition captain back to the hut.
Dasun Shanaka was sent back for 3 runs by Holder, before Prasidh Krishna dismissed Jofra Archer, who was sent up the order, for 7 off 4 balls.
Jadeja ran back in to bat after attending to his catch in the dressing room, to hold anchor with Sooryavanshi, who was dropped on 46 by Sai Sudharsan and went on to bring up yet another half-century.
The left-handed duo added a further 52 runs before the youngster was removed for 96 off 47 deliveries by Rabada. Donovan Ferreira’s blazing 38 off 11 runs cameo and Jadeja’s unbeaten 45 off 35 powered RR to 214/6 in 20 overs.
Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill started the chase with aplomb as the duo kept the runs flowing with a swathe of boundaries with both batters bringing up their half-centuries in quick fashion as GT raced into triple-figures before the midway point.
Sudharsan’s spectacular innings was cut short by yet another hit-wicket dismissal as the southpaw had to endure a similar fate to the one he suffered against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the first qualifier
The duo added a 167-run opening stand before Sai’s bizarre dismissal as Gill continued his onslaught to get to his century. The skipper led from the front with an incredible 109-run knock in just 53 deliveries before falling to Archer.
Washington Sundar added a quick 16 off 9 deliveries before falling to Nandre Burger, as Jos Buttler and Rahul Tewatia took GT over the finish line unbeaten on 9 and 17 runs respectively to secure their place in the championship clash in their own backyard.
