Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Shubman Gill blamed Gujarat Titans for their 29-run defeat against Kolkata Knight Riders on a poor fielding performance, saying the side “didn’t deserve to win” after dropping several catches during the high-scoring IPL 2026 clash at the Eden Gardens on Saturday.GT’s five-match winning streak came to an end despite a spirited chase led by Gill with 85, Jos Buttler with 57 and Sai Sudharsan with an unbeaten 53. Chasing a mammoth 248, Gujarat ended up at 218/4 as KKR stayed alive in the playoffs.Reflecting on the defeat, Gill felt that Gujarat actually did well with the bat but failed badly in the field.“When I look at the wicket, 200-210 was a par score but we dropped too many catches. The pitch was good, the odd one was stopping but I felt we batted well to get the score we did,” Gill said after the match.GT’s fielding errors proved extremely costly as KKR took full advantage of the missed chances. Finn Allen was out twice before smashing a breathtaking 93 off just 35 balls with 10 sixes, while Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Cameron Green were given reprieve before scoring unbeaten fifties.Gill admitted the Titans failed to maintain the standards they had set earlier in the tournament.“No worries but our field position could have been a lot better. We set a certain standard and dropped 3 riders – we didn’t deserve to win this,” said Gill.Despite the loss, the Gujarat skipper feels the defeat could serve as a timely wake-up call ahead of the playoffs.“When I look at it that way, it’s best to have a game like this now than in the qualifiers,” he added.Earlier in the chase, GT looked good to be in control of Gill, leading the counter-attack in style. The opener smashed five fours and seven sixes in his 49-ball 85 as Buttler gradually found his rhythm after a slow start. Sudharsan, who briefly left injured after an elbow strike, later returned to complete the fighting half-century.At 177/1 after 16 overs, Gujarat looked still capable of chasing the target before Sunil Narine produced a crucial over to turn it back in KKR’s favour.KKR had earlier piled up 247/2 after Gill sent them into bat. Allen’s explosive knock set the tone before Raghuvanshi’s unbeaten 82 and Green’s unbeaten 52 secured the hosts their highest score of the season.The defeat leaves Gujarat Titans second in the IPL 2026 points table with 16 points from 13 matches, while KKR moved closer to the play-off spots with the much-needed win.Gill said the Titans will now focus on recovery before returning home for the next game.“I think rest and recover for a few days, go back to Ahmedabad, see how the wicket is and then plan accordingly (for the next match),” Gill said.
