After Gujarat Titans’ comprehensive 77-run win over Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad on Saturday (May 9, 2026), batting coach Matthew Hayden said the side had finally begun to put together all facets of its game effectively.

“I think it’s a very good team. It’s a dangerous bowling side, and that’s what we’ve seen tonight. We’ve just got so many apex predators. The top three of the batting order is such a solid unit. We’re starting to play with great confidence. Tonight was actually the first game as a coach that I thought we put all of the departments together really nicely,” he said.

On Rashid Khan’s return to form, he said: “Rashid is an X-factor in this competition. He’s now arguably back to his best. You saw the zip off the wicket, and even Donovan Ferreira, who’s been in incredible touch, didn’t pick a leg-spinner. For me, those are the little signs that Rashid is at his best. That ball was around 110 kph. That was a beauty. It would have got most batters out. Having him through the middle [overs] is very challenging for any opposition.”

Referring to the new-ball pair of Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada, Hayden said: “Velocity matters. 150kph-type bowling is hard to play and slog. We saw a number of balls go up in the air tonight because of high-velocity, high-impact bowling. I think the best sides have the best defensive line-ups, of which, at the absolute helm, is the fast-bowling unit. And we’ve got that covered nicely.”

Bond disappointed

Chasing 230, RR was bowled out for 152. Fast bowling coach Shane Bond said: “It’s a disappointing performance for us. We just weren’t good enough tonight. We misread the pitch a little bit.

“I think we may now have to win two of our last three matches, or maybe all three. With, perhaps, some better fielding, we could’ve won a couple more”.

Assistant coach Parthiv Patel said Gujarat Titans would look to maximise the impact of its pace attack against Rajasthan Royals by striking early in Saturday’s (May 9, 2026) Indian Premier League (IPL) clash at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

“If we get wickets at the start, then we have quite an upper hand in the game. Our plans are quite set, and we are quite comfortable with the way we are playing right now. With the kind of bowling attack we have, we would want to restrict them to the minimum score possible,” he said on Friday.

Parthiv reserved special praise for the new-ball pair of Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada, highlighting the pressure they have created in recent matches.

“Both are highly performing players at the international level. You know the pedigree both of them bring, especially with the new ball. Rabada bowling 150 kph consistently and the way Siraj has been putting pressure — it’s great to see.”

He also hailed the influence of Jason Holder, calling him “that proper all-rounder” capable of anchoring an innings or finishing aggressively, while also bringing tactical awareness with the ball.

Parthiv also praised Rajasthan youngsters Ashok Sharma and Manav Suthar, calling the former “a very good prospect” with “a very bright future for India” while highlighting the latter’s maturity and consistency in domestic cricket.

In 2023 and 2024, Gujarat Titans treated Jaipur like an away ATM: insert XI, withdraw points. Then came 2025, and the machine jammed.

Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (101, 38b) didn’t just break it — he rewired it mid-game. Suddenly, GT wasn’t the disruptor anymore. Saturday’s (May 9, 2026) Indian Premier League (IPL) match now poses a simple question — Rajasthan Royals to draw level, or GT to reassert control?

There are grounds where 180 sits on the board like a mob boss at a nightclub — untouchable, respected, radiating consequences. The Sawai Mansingh Stadium this season has not been one of them.

Here, the scoreboard has behaved like a slot machine in a provincial casino. Targets aren’t safe, and batters have swung as if the boundary cushions owe them money.

That doesn’t entirely align with the blueprint behind GT’s three-match winning streak — the bowlers to contain, the target to remain modest, the chase to unfold without panic. It has won seven out of seven chases of 170 or below since 2025.

Kagiso Rabada has rediscovered rhythm with the new ball, claiming four wickets at an economy of 6.89 in the PowerPlay across the last three matches. Significantly, three of those dismissals have come through short and short-of-length deliveries. Mohammed Siraj has been equally incisive, taking four wickets at 6.44 in the same phase.

Their duel with RR’s explosive openers — Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sooryavanshi — could be the night’s defining match-up. Jason Holder’s return of seven wickets at 6.94 adds further control to GT’s attack.

With captain Riyan Parag striking form and Donovan Ferreira shaping into a terrific finisher, RR’s middle order has contributed more consistently over the last two games.

GT’s, meanwhile, remains vulnerable. Including its last match against Punjab Kings, GT’s Nos. 4 to 7 have averaged only 22 since the last IPL — the second-lowest among all teams in that period. RR has enough bowling variety to expose and target that weakness in search of its first win here this season.

Gujarat Titans spin-bowling coach Aashish Kapoor on Saturday insisted that his team’s strength lies in accumulating runs the traditional way instead of the modern approach of attacking from the outset in T20s.

“You see our batting approach, whether it’s any kind of surface, it’s proper cricket up front. So our batters, [Shubman] Gill, Sai Sudarshan, and [Jos] Buttler will look to play proper cricket. It’s not that we are looking to score 120 runs in six overs like other teams. We want to play normal cricket, get to 60-70-80 runs, whatever we can, and then see where we can go from there,” he said on the eve of GT’s contest against Punjab Kings here.

Kapoor also heaped praise on Rahul Tewatia for holding his nerve and steering his side to a four-wicket win in the last match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

For the first eight games of the ongoing IPL season, Gujarat Titans lacked a cutting edge. It didn’t put up big totals and barely intimidated opponents as it oscillated between the sublime and the ordinary, winning four games and losing four.

But that was until Jason Holder arrived like a Swiss Army knife in the four-wicket victory over Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Thursday (April 30, 2026) — well-rounded, adaptable and the ideal combination of form and function.

Rashid Khan was quick to interject when a query on Wednesday night alluded to his returns in the IPL last season. 

“Don’t remind me of it. It was a very bad season,” the Gujarat Titans leggie quipped, eliciting a ripple of laughter from the media.

One innings was all that Cooper Connolly needed to reverse his fortunes, both literally and statistically. The left-handed Australian went from scoring only 27 runs in his previous seven T20 appearances to accumulating an unconquered 72 on his IPL debut.

In the face-off against Gujarat Titans in New Chandigarh on Tuesday, the Punjab Kings batter exhibited why he is a much better player than the recent poor returns suggested. For the 22-year-old, a brief period away from the sport did the trick.

“I had a couple of weeks at home to refresh and reset. That was probably the point where I changed and told myself that I was going to go to the IPL fresh,” Connolly said after deservedly winning the Player-of-the-Match trophy for his well-constructed knock.

There was never a question mark over the sheer talent he possesses; it was about how often he could convert potential into productivity. Connolly’s mental strength to overcome failures and begin a new chapter with a bang impressed Yuzvendra Chahal.

“Connolly is only 22 years old, but he is very hungry. The way he performed at No. 3 in his very first IPL game and the match-winning innings he delivered show how mature he is mentally. This is a good sign for our team. The way he is batting, he could be one of the finds of the season,” said Chahal, another shining light for PBKS in its season opener.

Also among the members of the unofficial Connolly fan army is Kings captain Shreyas Iyer. “Some of the shots he played were surreal to watch. Connolly has got great awareness as a player. He has a great mindset and hopefully he continues with the same form,” Shreyas sang the praises of the new recruit.

PBKS would hope that Tuesday’s masterclass was the first of many in red and blue.

Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden has been named as the batting coach of Gujarat Titans for the upcoming IPL season, the franchise announced on Tuesday (March 10, 2026).

A two-time ODI World Cup winner and one of the most dominant opening batters of his era, Hayden joins the Titans set-up with an illustrious international career and expertise in modern-day T20 batting dynamics.

Hayden represented Australia in 273 international matches across formats, scoring over 15,000 international runs and played a pivotal role in multiple ICC tournament victories.

Commenting on the appointment, GT Director of Cricket, Vikram Solanki said: “Matthew’s appointment comes at a pivotal phase in our journey. His experience at the highest level, coupled with his ability to mentor emerging talent, will be instrumental in shaping our batting identity for the seasons ahead.”

On his part, Hayden said: “Good batting applies pressure. Great batting owns the game. That’s the standard we want to set at Gujarat Titans.”

His aggressive yet technically robust approach to batting laid early foundations for the evolution of powerplay dominance in white-ball cricket. He also featured in 32 IPL matches, showcasing a style of play ideally suited to the league’s high-intensity demands.