Gujarat Titans Captain Shubman Gill Reveals 'Advantage' Of Playing IPL 2026 Final At Ahmedabad
Standing on the cusp of his first IPL title as captain, Shubman Gill said he does not get burdened by expectations but hoped to leverage Gujarat Titans' home advantage in the final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
Standing on the cusp of his first IPL title as captain, Shubman Gill said he does not get burdened by expectations but hoped to leverage Gujarat Titans' home advantage in the final against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Both GT and defending champions RCB are seeking their respective second IPL title at the sprawling Narendra Modi Stadium here on Sunday. "Honestly, I don't really get the burden of expectations. There are advantages, there's familiarity when we play here, as we know the wicket, the ground, so, we know what kind of cricket we need to play here to be able to win," Gill said during the pre-final press conference.
"So, in that context, yes, I see it (playing at home) as an advantage, because there's a little bit of familiarity. If you win, it's going to be a great season, if you don't win, it'll still be a good season, but it'll be better if you win," he added.
The Titans entered the final after defeating Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets in the Qualifier 2 at Mullanpur on Friday night, before travelling to Ahmedabad.
But prior to that they were in Dharamsala to play in the Qualifier 1 against RCB, a match that they lost by a massive margin of 92 runs.
So, are they wary of the fatigue factor after shuttling around the venues ahead of the final? For Gill, it was all about mindset.
"Dharamsala is kind of a difficult venue to, you know, get there and travel. But, yes, physically they (RCB) might have an advantage.
"But I think finals are all about mental, so the team that is mentally up there for the challenge is the one that's going to win," he added.
While most of the teams adopted an explosive batting method from the word go, GT trusted in a rather old-school approach of keeping wickets in hand upfront and gradual acceleration.
Gill justified his team's playing style.
"I think it's all about getting the job done, isn't it? Like, it doesn't matter how you get it done, as long as you keep getting the job done, that is what it's about." Accordingly, Gill and his opening partner Sai Sudharsan have ensured that there has been a healthy dose of singles and doubles in their knocks, keeping the scoreboard ticking.
"The wickets have been really good, but sometimes the wicket tends to be a bit on the slower side, then it's important to find gaps, run well, because I think that's the foundation of any format you're playing.
"The team that plays fewer dot balls has a better chance of, you know, getting a better score," he said.
Similarly, the GT pace bowlers have employed the rather traditional Test match length to good effect in this IPL to keep a lid on scoring. Gill explained the strategy.
"The message is simple, when you're bowling with the new ball, if there is a little bit (of help) in the wicket, as a batsman I know the hardest ball to hit is the good length ball, but that good length changes according to the wicket — black soil, red soil etc — as it varies probably a metre back or forth.
"So, there's a reason why Test match length works, because it is the hardest ball to hit as a batsman with the new ball." The 26-year-old pointed at the way GT bowlers used bouncers against Vaibhav Suryavanshi-led Rajasthan Royals batting line-up in the Qualifier 2 at Mullanpur on Friday.
Suryavanshi made a 96 but was not allowed a free run for a large part of his 47-ball innings.
"I think the way we executed our bouncers (vs RR), was quite exceptional. In every over we used our bouncers very well and the accuracy of bouncers that we bowled, I've actually not seen in a T20 game.
"The number of bouncers that we used and the success that we got with the bouncers was tremendous," he added.Â
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