As the business end of the current edition of the IPL becomes more and more interesting with all top 6 teams in a close fight to make it to the Playoffs stage, the contests we see each evening are becoming more and more interesting to watch. From uncertain results to unexpected twists, these T20 games are becoming a belter of a contest from fans’ as well as the players’ point of view. Aren’t they? And perhaps that is precisely what makes the Indian Premier League the doyen of all world class franchise based leagues, isn’t it? Another contest that perhaps undermined the usual or expected winner (as one would have thought it), a top order team and pronounced the power and gravitas of a team that not many would have picked to win in the end took place just hours ago at Ahmedabad. And the one that did come right on top was its home team- Gujarat Titans with the then table topping Sunrisers Hyderabad having been found complicit in the end.

Really, it has to be said that the way in which the Gujarat Titans first challenged- and then thwarted- the supremacy of Sunrisers Hyderabad who prior to the start of the contest on May 12, 2026 been the table topping side in the current season was commendable. But then what ought to be noted is that not only did the Gujarat Titans win the contest without there being a significant batting contribution of their captain, Shubman Gill, they overcame a team that on paper and recent form perhaps seemed too ominous to lock horns with. The Sunrisers Hyderabad have been contesting with a newfound rich vigour of sorts ever since their regular captain Australian all rounder Pat Cummins has returned to lead the fold.  

But having said that, in being overcome in the end in the most recent contest held against the GT, here’s what their Pat Cummins’ opposite number in the Gujarat camp- Shubman Gill- shared in the contest’s aftermath (remember for the first time this season, Hyderabad failed to even post 100 Runs on the board)

Speaking to the media on the ground, the famous right hander who bats up the order for GT shared a pertinent insight about the way in which his team takes on their games in this important phase of the Indian Premier League:

“We are not a team who play a particular style and brand. We like to assess the conditions and play accordingly!”

A thoughtful approach And having said that, what Gill shared is rather important and quite telling as an observation if you look at the kind of surface that his side batted on. The wicket was slow and the ball didn’t quite come up as well to the bat as their batters would have quite liked it to. So the situation demanded for the batters to stay on at the wicket and avoid playing aggressively so as to converse wickets on what was a tricky surface to bat on. This was seen in the fact that at the halfway stage, they had lost 3 wickets and were batting cautiously and adapting to the wicket with their run rate being only around 7 an over.

As the table topping side now, Gujarat would want to continue their winning form and take their game to the next level in their now more powerful bid to make it to the playoffs.