IPL 2026: Gujarat rise to second spot with fourth straight win

Twenty-eight overs into the contest in Jaipur, Rajasthan Royals (RR) were keeping pace with Gujarat Titans (GT). They were 86 for 3 in seven overs, chasing 230.

Dhruv Jurel looked like he had excised his slow-batting demons. He was on 24 off 9 and ready to go bigger. Then, Rashid Khan spun one past Jurel’s slog to peg back his stumps. It was the first of his four wickets. On a night of a spin chokeholds by both RR and GT, Rashid’s spell of 4 for 36 was the point of difference between both sides.

At the end of it all, GT zoomed up to second spot in the points table with 14 points. It was their fourth consecutive win, as they continued their late surge in this IPL.

Earlier in the evening, half-centuries from Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan – and their 118-run opening partnership – headlined GT’s biggest IPL score outside Ahmedabad.

They had been greeted by an all-pink Jaipur. RR’s jerseys were the same colour, in honour of their women’s empowerment movement.

By the end of the powerplay, Gill and Sudharsan couldn’t have felt more at home themselves. They had raced away to 82 for 0, and alongside Rashid’s spell, they headlined a 77-run win. (ESPNcricinfo)