NEW DELHI: Shubman Gill called it a night to forget, and Gujarat Titans certainly lived up to that description after a brutal loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Qualifier 1 of the IPL 2026. The match was played at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala on Tuesday, where Gill’s decision to bowl first proved costly. RCB took full control from the outset and posted an eye-catching 254/5 in 20 overs, the highest team total ever seen in an IPL playoff game. When Gujarat came out to chase, the script never flipped in their favour as they were dismissed for 162, unable to build any sustained momentum against a disciplined RCB attack.
Gill’s frustration was evident during the post-match presentation, as he admitted the team would need to shake off the heavy defeat quickly before turning their attention to Qualifier 2. “(Surprised with the way the pitch behaved?) I mean, not really. I think we were going pretty well up until the 12th, 13th over, and I don’t think our fielding was at par, dropping a couple of catches, and then our ground fielding was not up to the mark,” he said. When asked about what they could take from the game, Gill responded that the match was one they would rather not dwell on. “Yeah, definitely… this is, like you said, one of those games that we’d like to forget and start over in Mohali,” he added.
With the emphatic win, Royal Challengers Bengaluru booked a direct berth in the IPL 2026 final. Gujarat Titans, though, remain in the hunt and will now head to Mullanpur for Qualifier 2, where they will meet the winner of the Eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals.
The turning point in RCB’s innings came through skipper Rajat Patidar, who transformed the momentum after Gujarat gave him a second chance—he was dropped twice in the field. Once he settled, Patidar punished almost every bowler he faced, shifting gears repeatedly and reaching his half-century in just 21 balls. Gujarat’s bowling was forced to absorb pressure, and their fielding only made matters worse, with misfields and no-balls arriving at key moments that allowed RCB to keep accelerating rather than being pinned back.
Patidar finished unbeaten on a sensational 93 off 39 deliveries, striking five fours and nine sixes. His knock stood out as one of the most impactful playoff innings in IPL history, especially given the stage of the tournament and the magnitude of the target that eventually arrived.
In the chase, Gujarat Titans never found a workable rhythm after losing wickets at regular intervals. RCB’s bowling attack kept the pressure on throughout, with New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy leading the way by taking three wickets. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rasikh Salam, and Krunal Pandya also contributed with two wickets each, ensuring Gujarat’s batting unit was constantly chasing a moving target.
When Gill was asked whether the fielding lapses—particularly under pressure—would be addressed in training, he was candid. “No, it’s definitely something that we do address in the team meetings and also in the practice sessions. But like I said, I don’t think it was a day, the intensity was right there, but under pressure situations, we were not up to the mark,” he said.
Gill also reflected on the chase and whether the innings could have started differently. “(Were you confident walking out to bat with the chase?) I mean, it’s all about getting a good start, you know. If you get a good power play and on a ground like this we know the ball travels and the outfield is also very quick. So if you would have gotten off to a good start in the power play, any target with the kind of way the wicket was playing and the kind of ground that we were playing at, it could have been chaseable,” he added.
One of the most unfortunate dismissals of the season also occurred during Gujarat’s innings. Opener Sai Sudharsan was dismissed hit wicket in a bizarre moment. After starting aggressively—hitting two boundaries off the first two balls against Duffy—Sudharsan looked set for a big score before the incident disrupted everything. While attempting a cut shot, the bat slipped from his hands and crashed onto the stumps as he was already beginning his run. Gill described the dismissal as something that rarely happens. “(On Sudharsan’s dismissal) Yeah, I mean, you don’t see that kind of dismissal very often. So that was very unfortunate,” he said.
