Gill's unbeaten 104 blasts Titans past Royals and into IPL 2026 final

The Gujarat Titans are into the IPL 2026 final. A seven-wicket victory over the Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 2, sealed on the back of captain Shubman Gill's unbeaten 104 off 53 balls, has teed up a title showdown with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday, 31st May.

The Royals had put a challenging 214 on the board, yet the Titans made the chase look almost effortless. "We felt 215 was chaseable, especially after at one stage it looked like the opposition would only get around 180-190," Gill said after being named Player of the Match. "After the strong start, the discussion was about finishing the game, which is why I was disappointed with the way I got out."

Titans' openers blitz the Powerplay

Much of the damage was done inside the Powerplay. Gill and Sai Sudharsan took Jofra Archer's new-ball spell to the cleaners, threading and muscling their way through with alarming ease, and a string of extras compounded Rajasthan's misery as the Titans cannonballed to 100 for nought inside the ninth over.

Sudharsan fell for 14, dismissed hit wicket for the second match running, but by then the tone was set. Gill brought up a classy hundred, "with almost run-a-ball needed", before Buttler, Sundar and Tewatia ensured the Titans coasted home safely. It was, in the words of the match report, not a barrage of sixes or chest-thumping assault, but "a quiet, suffocating efficiency" — playing the ball on merit and bleeding the dot balls dry.

Sooryavanshi's heroics not enough for the Royals

The Royals' campaign ends on a high note, but with a familiar sting. Teenage sensation Vaibhav Sooryavanshi carried the innings almost single-handedly with a sensational 96, the century eluding him for the second consecutive match. "You have got to feel for this god-gifted kid," ran the commentary as he cut a dejected figure in the RR dugout at the final whistle. "On the field, facing bowlers, there is not a trace of it" — a maturity stitched into every shot that told a story far bigger than the number.

Around him, Ravindra Jadeja, battling a tennis elbow injury that forced him off mid-innings, dug deep to return and finish on 45 off 35 after early strikes from Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada, while Ferreira piled on the misery for Rashid Khan in the final over, plundering four sixes off it.

'I was in a zone' — Gill on his match-winning knock

Gill said he was "simply in a zone where I focused on finding the gaps rather than trying to hit the ball too hard", adding that he was watching the ball closely, backing his scoring areas and timing everything nicely. "That's what tends to happen when a batter is in good rhythm."

On his famous partnership with Sudharsan, the captain said the pair "complement each other well" and communicate brilliantly, knowing each other's game — including who will take on which bowler. He joked that no one has probably seen anything like Sudharsan being dismissed hit wicket in two matches in a row, suggesting a video about taping the bat handle he recently came across might be worth trying. "He might have to try that in the next game."

Sudharsan, for his part, laughed that he would "try some grip changes because I don't really have an answer for losing hold of the bat", while reserving special praise for his captain's innings as "unbelievable". Reflecting on the chase, he said the aim was to win the Powerplay early and assess from there. Gill, meanwhile, saluted the side's depth — Sai Kishore did not even need to bowl, highlighting six or seven quality bowling options alongside a deep batting lineup.

Parag: 'A campaign filled with positives'

Royals captain Riyan Parag felt 215 was "a defendable score", though he admitted the heavy roller made batting a bit easier on the pitch, with the slower, shorter balls sticking on the surface in the first innings. He conceded that 230-240 "would have made the chase far more competitive", but admitted they failed to get Gujarat's openers early, which made the task extremely difficult afterwards.

Looking back at the season, Parag called it "a campaign filled with positives", noting that not many expected such a young and inexperienced side to even qualify. Praising the character shown through multiple transitions and combinations, he said finishing third is a strong foundation for the future.

Finale locked in: a rematch of Qualifier 1

It will be a familiar rivalry rekindled — a rematch of Qualifier 1, where RCB prevailed over the Titans. But finals have a way of rewriting scripts, and this one arrives in front of the Titans' home crowd at the gigantic Narendra Modi Stadium. The first ball of the Grand Finale is scheduled for 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT) on Sunday, 31st May. Will history repeat itself, or will the Titans turn the tide this time around?