![Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan in a fun exchange [Source: StarSportsIndia/X.com]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1774614737922_IshanKishanShubmanGillGTSRH.jpg?type=hq)
Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan in a fun exchange [Source: StarSportsIndia/X.com]
The IPL 2026 is on the horizon, and much like the fans around India, players, including India’s Test and ODI skipper, Shubman Gill and the new Sunrisers Hyderabad, are in a festive mood, raring to get going.
Ishan Kishan’s SRH will play the first match of the tournament against the defending champions, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, on March 28 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Just a couple of days ahead of the exciting new beginning for him, Kishan was seen having a blast at his first pre-season captains’ meet with GT’s Shubman Gill.
The duo, famous for their off-field fun antics, was seen exchanging some epic banter with fun to and fro as they sat together for a shoot.
Watch- Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan roast each other ahead of IPL 2026
In the latest segment posted by Star Sports India to get the fans excited for the season, Ishan Kishan was sitting with Shubman Gill and host Sahiba Bali for a tournament countdown shoot.
As the host introduced both captains to the viewers, Gill was quick to pounce on the opportunity and termed Ishan as “Aadha captain [half captain]”, as Pat Cummins would eventually replace him.
He further roasted Ishan brutally by saying, “Main sirf full captains ko advice deta hu [I only give advice to full captains].”
Ishan Kishan, who recently won the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy as the captain, boldly revealed that he doesn’t need any advice from anyone and made a bold prediction that Gill wouldn’t do well against them to hit back at the India skipper.
The banter continued for a while, and Gill reminded Ishan of SRH’s abysmal 1/6 record against GT. Ishan capped it off by saying both teams have an equal number of IPL trophies and the head-to-head doesn’t matter.
Also Read: Uncapped Indian Players Set To Replace Big Names In IPL 2026
Ishan eyes all-format place in Indian team
During the conversation, as Ishan Kishan wished Gill the best for the tournament, the Indian longer formats skipper took a shot at his intentions, claiming that he wants to get into the other two teams.
Ishan recently returned to the T20I setup after setting SMAT on fire, and backed it up with a near-perfect T20 World Cup tournament, scoring 317 runs in 9 innings, only 4 behind Sanju Samson. Following the good last few months, he was given the responsibility to lead SRH in Pat Cummins’ absence.
As SRH chase their second IPL title (first since 2016), it will be a golden opportunity for Ishan to continue the winning momentum and possibly return to the ODI team, where the second wicketkeeper is up for grabs. In Tests, he would be competing with Dhurv Jurel but has time on his hands to make a bid for that as well.
Gill to compete for Orange Cap in IPL 2026
Shubman Gill, who was a part of the T20I team till the series before the T20 World Cup has a chip on his shoulder to show the world what he can bring to the table. Since joining GT, no other batter has scored more IPL runs than Gill (2449). He has also claimed the Orange Cap in 2023, scoring 890 runs.
Ahead of IPL 2026, with Jos Buttler and Sai Sudharsan blowing hot and cold recently, Gill will have his task cut out to chase another orange cap if the GT want to bid for the title. Looking at his impeccable record at Ahmedabad, he is well-poised to finish in the top-5 scorers of IPL 2026.
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