Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: With a strong squad at their disposal, the Gujarat Titans face a tricky task in finalising their playing combination for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. The Shubman Gill-led side will have to take a key call on two versatile all-rounders — Shahrukh Khan and Rahul Tewatia — both of whom bring valuable finishing ability in the death overs.Speaking on JioHotstar’s ‘Game Plan – Know Your Team’, JioStar expert Sanjay Bangar shared his assessment of how GT could approach their combinations this season.
“One thing GT have done is persist with the players they selected in the first place. They have stuck with Shahrukh Khan and Rahul Tewatia. Washington Sundar has been given a role in T20 cricket for them. Not necessarily with the ball, but he comes in to bat in important positions, maybe at number four. I see a similar role for Washington Sundar, more with the bat. We hope Shahrukh Khan repays the faith shown by the GT management in him. He showed signs of improvement last season, scoring runs at crucial times. If both Tewatia and Shahrukh play, one could be used as an impact player. If they contribute lower down the order, that will help GT a lot because most runs came from the top order last time,” said Bangar.Bangar also highlighted that adding Glenn Phillips to the playing XI could significantly boost Gujarat’s batting firepower.He further analysed why Rashid Khan’s mystery factor appears to have reduced in T20 cricket.“Rashid Khan’s mystery factor fading away can be a combination of multiple factors. There is now broad familiarity among batters on how to play him. Batsmen have had enough look-ins because Rashid plays in all major franchise T20 leagues. He is a franchise king. Players all around the world get opportunities to play against him. The more you face a bowler, the more your mind starts finding methods to deal with him. The pitch at Narendra Modi Stadium is not on the slower side. A major part of his game was to hit the pads or get bowled dismissals by keeping the stumps in play. That goes away a little bit.“The injury he had, he has come back from it. It may be taking a toll in terms of the pace at which he is bowling. These are factors that may have diminished his returns a little. But he is still a bowler who picks up two or three wickets and bowls with an economy rate of under eight an over,” said Bangar, who has previously coached the Punjab Kings.
