Shubman Gill pinpoints the overs that decided the RCB vs GT clash
RCB vs GT: Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill did not shy away from honesty after his side fell to a five-wicket defeat against Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 24, 2026. RCB chased down 206 in 18.5 overs, powered by Virat Kohli’s 81 off 44 balls and Devdutt Padikkal’s explosive 55 off 27, to hand GT a defeat that Gill acknowledged his team brought upon themselves through poor execution in the critical phases of both innings.
How did three overs unravel GT’s batting innings?
Gill pointed directly at overs 16 to 19 as the phase where Gujarat Titans squandered their platform. GT posted 205/3 on the back of Sai Sudharsan’s magnificent century, 100 off 58 balls, his third IPL hundred, yet Gill felt the late-over restraint from RCB’s bowlers exposed their inability to find boundaries consistently. He noted that GT had built a strong powerplay position but failed to convert those foundations into a truly commanding total, because their batters could not score the runs they needed across those final middle-to-death overs against disciplined death bowling.
The dropped Kohli chance and the bowling inconsistencies Gill flagged
Dropping Virat Kohli on zero proved hugely costly, given that he went on to score 81, and Shubman Gill addressed the moment with measured composure rather than deflecting blame. He acknowledged that dropped catches always weigh heavily on the fielder, but stressed that the response and recovery matter far more than the error itself.
On the bowling front, Gill identified length consistency as GT’s principal failing; they hit the right areas occasionally, yet never maintained the pressure long enough to strangle RCB’s chase. He also revealed the thinking behind bringing Manav Suthar into the attack, explaining that because Krunal Pandya’s slower deliveries were gripping the surface noticeably during GT’s innings, the team calculated that Suthar offered the best chance of pulling two quick wickets and swinging the match back in their favour.
“Yeah, definitely, I think, from 16 till 19, those three overs, we couldn’t get any boundaries, and we didn’t get as many runs as we would have liked. I think those three overs were very crucial for us. I mean, at the end of the power play, I think we were in a good position. It was all about taking wickets in the middle overs, which I think we were not able to do just after the power play got over. (on dropping Kohli on 0) I mean, when a batsman gets dropped or not, it’s always, it’s tough on the fielder, but I think it’s important how you come back in the game.
And with the ball, I think we had our moments, but I don’t think we were able to consistently hit the length ball, which was at times difficult to hit on this wicket. And you know, some balls here and there, and I think they batted brilliantly in the middle overs. (on Suthar) When we were batting, the balls that were, when I was batting, the balls that Krunal bowled slow, it was gripping a little bit. So, we thought we might take a chance. They are far ahead in the game. If we get a couple of wickets in this over, it might bring us back in the game.”
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RCB vs GT remains one of IPL 2026’s fiercest rivalries, and Shubman Gill’s candid assessment suggests GT will return sharper.
