Shubman Gill discussing with Prasidh Krishna in IPL 2026. PC-AP
On Monday, Mumbai Indians (MI) returned to winning ways by beating the Gujarat Titans (GT) comprehensively in Ahmedabad's iconic the Narendra Modi Stadium. After losing four games on the trot, the Hardik Pandya-led unit embarrassed Shubman Gill's GT with a hefty defeat of 99 runs.
Batting first, Mumbai were on the verge of another defeat but a special from Tilak Varma turned the tides completely, as he scored a 45-ball 100 after being struck at 19 off 22 balls at one stage.
Later, a solid performance with the ball from MI's young guns restricted the Titans to 100 runs - the lowest score of the IPL 2026, courtesy Ashwani Kumar's four-fer and two apiece for the two spinners.
GT bows down to Ashwani, MI spinners
Defending a strong total of 199/5, MI had a wonderful start. Jasprit Bumrah bagged his first wicket of the season, on first ball of the spell by inducing Sai Sudharsan's outside edge. His captain Hardik Pandya backed Bumrah's good work, trapping Jos Buttler in front.
The Punjab quick Ashwani Kumar, who made ways last season, started his campaign in IPL 2026 by thrashing GT's bleak middle order - returning with wickets of Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Rashid Khan and the Punjab prodigy Shubman Gill as well.
If Mumbai's pacers were too hot to handle, the pair of Mitchell Santner and Allah Ghazanfar were no less. The two snapped two wickets each. After all, GT were tossed up for exact 100 runs in just 15.5 overs.
Also Read: Gujarat Titans Registers Unwanted Record After Humiliating Loss Vs MI
MI's thrashing leads GT to shameful record
As the Gujarat Titans tumbled for 100 runs, the Shubman Gill-led team attained a shameful IPL record. After losing by 99 runs, they suffered their biggest defeat in the short history of the IPL.
GT's previous worst came against Chennai Super Kings, at home, when Dewald Brevis (57) and Devon Conway (52) set up the game by taking the team to 230/5. The bowlers, especially Anshul Kamboj and Noor Ahmad, rolled Gujarat for 147, losing by 83 runs.
Meanwhile, GT's next-worst defeat ever also came against CSK, back in IPL 2024. Shivam Dube's fiery 51 and Rachin Ravindra's 20-ball 46 took the Super Kings to 200/6, before Tushar Despande, Deepak Chahar and Mustafizur Rahman snapped two wickets each to bundle them for 143/8, winning it by 63 runs.
Biggest Defeats for Gujarat Titans in IPL (By Runs):
- 99 runs vs Mumbai Indians, Ahmedabad, 2026, Tonight*
- 83 runs vs Chennai Super Kings, Ahmedabad, 2025
- 63 runs vs Chennai Super Kings, Chennai, 2024
GT's frail middle order cost three defeats
Shubman Gill's GT has won three and lost as many games in the IPL 2026. Traditionally, Gujarat's mantra to win has been fielding a strong bowling unit, for which they have to compromise with their batting.
The Gujarat Titans have relied heavily on their top three- Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler- for the bulk of their runs recently, leaving their middle order largely unreliable. A consistent issue, which has been evident this season, is that GT tends to suffer significant losses when its top three fail to perform.
With middle order batters failing consistently, the team management need to think past non-performers like Glenn Phillips and Rahul Tewatia.
Also Read: Shubman Gill Replacements- 3 Players Who Can Captain India's Test Team vs Afghanistan
