Gujarat Titans faced a setback in their IPL 2026 match against Rajasthan Royals as Shubman Gill was sidelined due to a muscle spasm. Rashid Khan, the stand-in captain, disclosed the news before the game, mentioning that Kumar Kushagra would replace Gill in the playing XI.
“Unfortunately, Gill has a muscle spasm, but we hope he will recover soon. It’s exciting to see KK (Kumar Kushagra) make his debut,” Rashid stated.
Kushagra, who previously played for Delhi Capitals in 2024, joined Gujarat Titans for INR 65 lakh at the IPL 2026 mini-auction. Known for his T20 prowess, Kushagra boasts 676 runs in 30 innings at an average of 28.16 and a strike rate of 145.68, including five half-centuries, with an unbeaten 86 as his highest score.
In another development, Hardik Pandya missed Mumbai Indians’ match against Delhi Capitals due to illness, with Suryakumar Yadav taking over the captaincy.
Rajasthan Royals, coming off a strong win against Chennai Super Kings, made a couple of alterations to their lineup for the game. Tushar Deshpande and Shubham Dubey replaced Brijesh Sharma and Ravi Bishnoi, respectively.
The playing XIs for Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals were as follows:
Gujarat Titans: Kumar Kushagra, Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler(w), Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan(c), Kagiso Rabada, Ashok Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Key Players: Shahrukh Khan, Jason Holder, Manav Suthar, Anuj Rawat, Jayant Yadav
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
Key Players: Ravi Bishnoi, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Shubham Dubey, Brijesh Sharma, Ravi Singh
The article concludes with IPL 2026 updates and relevant links for cricket enthusiasts to stay informed on the latest cricket news and statistics.