Brief Score: Gujarat (210/4 in 20 overs) beat Delhi (209/8) by 1 run. KL Rahul (92); Rashid Khan (3/17 at Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi. Highlighting | Scorecard
A masterclass from KL Rahul and heroic, thrilling cameos from David Miller were not enough to get Delhi Capitals over the line as they scrubbed green favorites Gujarat Titans in a breathtaking finish at the Arun Jaitley Stadium on Wednesday. In a game defined by the narrowest of margins, the Titans defended 210 by a solitary run to snap a two-game losing streak and finally get their IPL 2026 campaign going.
While Shubman Gill’s 70-and-a-half centuries from Jose Buttler and Washington Sundar set an impressive platform, it was Rashid Khan’s mesmerizing spell of 3 for 17 that really turned the tide. For the devotees of Delhi who packed the Kotla on a weekday, the evening ended on a dejected note.
It was a familiar feeling of “so close, yet so far” for David Miller, who was dealing with a painful injury to his left hand. After reducing the equation from 45 runs off the last three overs to just two required from two balls, he was left looking for answers against two accurate bouncers of slower balls from Prasidh Krishna.
After denying a single to Kuldeep Yadav in the penultimate delivery, Miller swung hard on the last ball but failed to make contact. Desperate for a bye to force a Super Over, Kuldeep was caught at the striker’s end by a clinical direct hit from Jose Buttler. The drama reached a crescendo when Delhi scored a big tally, but the officials remained unmoved, leaving the home crowd in stunned silence.
A distraught Miller was consoled by Axar Patel and KL Rahul, but Delhi will know it was a missed opportunity. After the visitors threatened a total north of 230, Gujarat got the reins back to 210 and the chase was firmly in their hands. For most of the innings, Rahul was the lone force to overcome a slow start to produce a majestic 92 off 55 balls, garnished with 11 boundaries and four sixes.
Apart from Pathum Nissanko’s brisk 41 in the over, Rahul lacked a steady ally in chasing such a steep target. Delhi’s middle order lacked the necessary composure, with Nitish Rana and Axar Patel both perishing as they tried to overpower Rashid Khan. Even the prolific Sameer Rizvi, who arrived on the back of two match-winning fifties, went for a golden duck, averted by Rashid’s signature googly.
Rashid, who recently faced scrutiny for a perceived decline in his wicket-taking ability, noticeably leaned back a step. The Afghan maestro, who recently discussed the development of his craft with India Today, was back to his best, bowling the ball with confidence and pulling sharp turns off the surface.
THE RETURN OF KILLER MILLER
The chase appeared to be derailed when Tristan Stubbs was run out for 7 in the 17th over, followed immediately by Rahul falling to a clever wide yorker from Mohammed Siraj. With 45 runs still needed and only David Miller and Vipraj Nigam remaining, the task seemed insurmountable, especially as Miller had earlier departed injured with a hand injury.
Still, the man they call “Killer Miller” refused to give up. He returned to the crease with his fingers taped and launched a stunning counter-attack. Requiring 36 from the last 12 balls, Miller dismantled Siraj’s final over, delivering two massive sixes – including a trademark no-look stroke – and a boundary. Vipraj played his part with a crucial four of his own and got the Kotla crowd roaring again.
With 13 needed from the final over, Shubman Gill turned to Prasidh Krishna, who had been expensive in his earlier spells. The gamble almost backfired when Krishna conceded ten runs in the first four deliveries, but the seamer held his nerve when it mattered most and delivered the runs that ensured a famous, narrow victory for the Titans.
Earlier in the day, Gujarat Titans were asked to bat and suffered an early blow when they lost the in-form Sai Sudharsan for 12 in the third over. Although he started positively with a crisp cover run from Mukesh Kumar, the Delhi Capitals pacer was quick to adapt and hit back. Drawing on the “Josh Hazlewood”-style hard length that proved effective in his match-winning spell against Mumbai Indians last Saturday, Mukesh hit the probe length consistently, giving the batsman little room to free his hands.
BUTTLER STORM
Jos Buttler, who had teased his starts in his opening two matches, arrived at number three with sights firmly on the horizon. He wasted no time in making his intentions known and dismantled Axar Patel’s opening with a boundary and a towering six.
However, the real carnage was reserved for Mukesh’s third over. Buttler began to play with medium pace, moving across the stumps to drive the long ball for a six with nonchalant ease. When Mukesh tried to deliver in a desperate attempt to make up for it, Buttler was waiting for him, tossing the delivery at length. Losing his rhythm completely, Mukesh bled out 23 runs in a single bruising set.
This explosive surge acted as the catalyst Gujarat needed, taking them past the 60-run mark in five overs. Still, Lungi Ngidi turned out to be a quintessential party pooper. He closed out the power play with a fine display of control, conceding just five runs.
His trademark slower balls, which have been the subject of much tactical chatter of late, have proved an intractable puzzle even for a rampaging Buttler. The start of the innings was erratic as skipper Shubman Gill, back from a crippling neck spasm, became a mere spectator, facing just seven deliveries in the first six overs.
Buttler’s half-century arrived in a blur of 24 balls, punctuated by five sixes. It was a historic cameo, marking the second highest number of maximums in the powerplay in IPL history by an unopener. But just when a century seemed inevitable, the Englishman was outwitted by a Kuldeep Yadav googly in the eighth over, unable to convert his lightning start into a marathon knock.
SUNDAR-GILL MIDDLE ANCHOR
That started a nervous chapter for Gujarat, whose middle order has often resembled a house of cards this season. But on Wednesday, Washington Sundar stepped into the breakthrough. Fresh from a grueling 40 minutes in the nets on the eve of the match, Sundar looked remarkably composed and chased Kuldeep to within three balls of his arrival.
His momentum was briefly checked by a resurgent T Natarajan. The left-arm seamer, who finally looked like his old self after a tiring battle with injuries, strangled the scoring by conceding a paltry 14 runs in his opening two-over.
Just as the pressure began to suffocate, Vipraj Nigam inadvertently switched off the burner. The young spinner endured a nightmare run out for 23, offering a buffet of short balls and a gift-wrapped full toss which Gill and Sundar gratefully sent. With Sundar shifting gears and Gill reaching his fifty in 33 balls, Gujarat had ballooned to 161 for 2 at three-quarter time.
However, the finish lacked the clinical edge that Gujarat craved.
As Gill continued to chase Kuldeep, driving the wrist spinner for two more sixes in the 17th over, the bowler at least had the consolation of knowing he had already caught Buttler, even as his figures were bruised for 42 runs.
At 181 for 2, the Titans were effectively looking down the barrel of a total of 220 plus. But Ngidi came back to provide the final twist, his off-cutter cheating Gill and sending him back for a well-made 70 off 45 balls. Despite some late successes from Sundar against Natarajan, the innings stalled. Gujarat managed just 49 runs in the last five overs, a pedestrian run that slipped through their fingers in a truly terrifying fashion.
Gill’s 70 was a vital anchor, yet a strike rate of 155 in the modern game will always invite the “anchor or anchor-weight” debate. Questions remain about his ability to find fifth gear in T20s, though we have to give him some latitude. After all, it was his first outing since recovering from that nagging neck spasm, which he admitted was the same problem that plagued him during the home Test series against South Africa.
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– The end
Issued by:
Saurabh Kumar
Published on:
08 Apr 2026 23:57 IST
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