Gujarat Titans continued their march towards the summit of IPL 2026 with a commanding 77-run win over Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Saturday. Invited to bat, fifties from captain Shubman Gill (84 off 44 balls) and Sai Sudharsan (55 off 36 balls), along with a quickfire 37* off 20 balls from Washington Sundar, propelled GT to 229/4. In reply, RR never looked in control of the chase despite teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi‘s early fireworks (36 off 16 balls).
Sooryavanshi’s dismissal in the third over stalled RR’s momentum, and Mohammed Siraj‘s aggressive celebration underscored the importance of the breakthrough.
A video of GT coach Ashish Nehra‘s gesture to Siraj just a ball before the dismissal has gone viral. Nehra can be seen gesturing toward his head, seemingly suggesting that Siraj bowl a bouncer at the youngster.
Nehra’s tactical masterstroke paid off instantly as Siraj executed his plan to perfection, resulting in Sooryavanshi’s wicket on the very next ball.
Masterstroke from Ashish Nehra and Mohammed Siraj nails the execution under pressure
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi falls to the trap #TATAIPL Revenge Week 2026 #RRvGT | LIVE NOW https://t.co/4f0xDg7EfO pic.twitter.com/ApgaLO8b24
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) May 9, 2026
RR slipped to fifth after their fifth loss in six games – their net run-rate took a huge dent.
GT got a great start from Gill and Sudharsan, who combined to smash 82 runs in the powerplay.
Gill hit his fourth half-century of the season off 30 balls. Sudharsan replicated that feat. Together they hit five sixes, laying down the base for a tall total.
Wrist spinner Yash Raj Punja got the breakthrough in the 11th over, getting Sudharsan out caught.
But Gill added vital partnerships in the middle order of 32 with Jos Buttler and 35 off only 18 balls with Washington Sundar.
Gill was out caught in the 17th over and Sundar pushed the score past 200.
In reply, RR were all out for 152 in 16.3 overs. Potent top-order batters Yashasvi Jaiswal, the wonderkid Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Shimron Hetmyer and Dhruv Jurel were all gone inside eight overs.
(With AP Inputs)
Featured Video Of The Day
IPL 2026 News | RCB Outplay CSK For 2nd Win On Trot, Ruturaj Gaikwad & Co Suffer 3rd Loss
Topics mentioned in this article