🏏IPL 2026: GT vs MI, 30th Match, at Ahmedabad

🏏IPL 2026: GT vs MI, 30th Match, at Ahmedabad 🏏

Problems seem to have taken up a permanent residence in the Mumbai Indians camp. A middle order that is increasingly becoming dysfunctional, a premier bowler who is going through a protracted dry spell, the two new-ball specialists who have lost their fizz, and there are spinners who are not Indians, a rarity in the IPL, and above all there is an experienced opener who is not available - well doubtful. No wonder the Mumbai Indians are standing on a quicksand - at the bottom of the IPL points table to be precise.

They won't admit but; it's panic stations. They are not theoretically out of the season but time may be fast running out. One win from five games is not an ideal start. Voices in the dressing room would cite the examples of 2014, when they made the playoffs after losing their first five games, and of the 2015 season when they won the title after losing five of the first six. But that would be stretching the optimism.

Skipper Hardik Pandya did not mince words after the previous loss, against Punjab Kings, calling for tough decisions. Who he was hinting at is a difficult conjecture but their opponents in the next game can be as tough as the previous ones. "I'll leave that conversation to the head coach and Hardik to have that chat just before the game. But I think it's important to acknowledge the fact that we're in this situation. And, to be honest, as a unit, we're the only ones who can work together and get ourselves out of it," Paras Mhambrey, the MI bowling coach, said.

Gujarat Titans are coming off three wins on the bounce and boast a 100 per cent record against Mumbai Indians at home - 4-0 at the Narendra Modi Stadium, the venue for Monday night's face-off. But given their pedigree and past record, MI still remain one of the most feared sides in the league, and if any team can pull off a turnaround, it is the Mumbai Indians. The GT management is well aware of the potential dangers while playing against Mumbai Indians.

"We've seen many times that Mumbai Indians have the ability to make a comeback, and I've been part of a couple of those while playing for them. But those things don't matter as much at this point - we need to focus on what we can do to the best of our ability," Parthiv Patel, the GT assistant coach said. "That's the beauty of this competition - any team can turn it around. We had that experience last year when CSK and LSG weren't playing well; they came here and beat us in the last two games, and we couldn't finish in the top two. So it's not just a question of form."

For the Gujarat Titans, bowling pace or spin has rarely been an issue, and the addition of Ashok Sharma has further boosted the fast-bowling department. Batting, however, has been hit and miss. They have largely relied on the top three. While Shubman Gill (251 in four games) and Jos Buttler (201 in five) have fired, Sai Sudharsan, last year's Orange Cap holder, has not quite found his rhythm this season, having fallen to short-pitched deliveries on a couple of occasions. The Titans will need him, as much as Washington Sundar (111 in five) and Glenn Phillips (61 in five), to be among the runs like Gill and Buttler.

When: GT vs MI, IPL 2026, April 20 at 7:30 PM IST

Where: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad

What to expect: Black soil pitch and long boundary dimensions should not lead one to believe it will be a low-scoring affair. The totals should exceed 200 and a strong MI assault on potent GT attack can be expected. It has the highest average first innings score since last season among all IPL venues.

Head to head: GT 5 - 3 MI. The Titans have maintained their stranglehold over Mumbai Indians, not only winning all four home games in Ahmedabad but also taking four of the last five encounters between the sides.

Gujarat Titans

Injuries/Unavailabilities: No information of any injury to anyone GT players.

Tactics & Match-ups: Rashid Khan has the measure of Quinton de Kock, having dismissed him three times, and the Afghan spin wizard could be introduced as early as in the PowerPlay if Kagiso Rabada and Mohammed Siraj fail to make early inroads.

Probable XII: Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler, Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, Rashid Khan, Ashok Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Mumbai Indians

Injuries/Unavailabilities: Rohit Sharma remains a doubtful starter, although he did have a batting session at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday evening. Mitchell Santner, who missed the previous game, is available, but there is no sign yet of Will Jacks. The English all-rounder is expected to arrive soon, though the exact timeline remains unclear.

Tactics & Match-ups: Jasprit Bumrah has six wickets from four games against Gujarat Titans, but Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur appear to have favourable match-ups against their batters, particularly Shubman Gill, having dismissed their leading run-scorer four and three times respectively.

Probable XII: Ryan Rickelton, Quinton de Kock (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya (c), Sherfane Rutherford, Tilak Varma, Mayank Rawat, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, AM Ghazanfar

Did you know?

- The average first innings score in Ahmedabad in the IPL since 2025 is 212 - highest among all the IPL venues to have hosted multiple games in the timeframe.

- The team batting first has won eight of the 11 games, the average 1st innings total in these being 218.

- Jos Buttler's strike rate in the first 10 deliveries has been 178 this season, his best since 2022.

Big picture

For Gujarat Titans (GT), IPL 2026 has been all about stability. They've only used 13 players over their five games so far, and played that 13th player only because injury ruled their captain Shubman Gill out of one match. Punjab Kings (PBKS), whose first-choice players have been injury-free so far, are the only team to have used fewer players.

Mumbai Indians (MI), on the other hand, have had to contend with both injury and form issues, and have used 17 players so far. Only Chennai Super Kings (CSK) have dipped deeper into their squad.

There's usually a strong correlation between stability and position on the points table, and so it is for both GT and MI going into Monday's clash in Ahmedabad. GT are on a three-game winning streak, and MI are on a four-game losing streak.

There could be such a thing as too much stability, however, and GT are prime candidates to get tripped up if the small band of players who do so much of their heavy lifting - particularly with the bat - have an off day. It says something about how much they rely on their top three of Gill, B Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler that M Shahrukh Khan, their regular Impact Player when they chase, has had two DNBs and faced just 12 balls across three innings while being not out once. Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips and Rahul Tewatia haven't done a whole lot of batting either.

In this, then, could lie MI's big chance: to front-load with the ball, and throw their best attacking weapons at GT's top three. It's easier said than done, of course, when your attack is struggling for both economy and penetration and is overreliant on one man, Jasprit Bumrah.

Having said that, though, GT could be just the kind of opposition MI might want to face now. GT bat in an anomalous, old-fashioned style, and rely on their bowling to reduce the scoring-rate burden on their batters. MI have quality in their batting though perhaps not the extra gear that teams like PBKS, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) have found over the last few seasons. MI typically struggle against that type of team; GT don't play that way.

In theory, then, MI could expect a little less pressure on their bowlers provided they are disciplined, and back their batters to do the job on the day against GT's bowlers.

How that translates into on-field performance, of course, remains to be seen.

Team news

GT have played the same XII whenever they've been able to this season, and it looks unlikely that they'll change that combination after winning three games on the bounce.

Gujarat Titans (probable): 1 Shubman Gill (capt), 2 B Sai Sudharsan, 3 Jos Buttler (wk), 4 Washington Sundar, 5 Glenn Phillips, 6 Rahul Tewatia, 7 M Shahrukh Khan, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Ashok Sharma, 10 Kagiso Rabada, 11 Mohammed Siraj, 12 Prasidh Krishna.

Rohit Sharma and Mitchell Santner (illness) missed MI's match against PBKS on Thursday. MI bowling coach Paras Mhambrey confirmed on Sunday that both were fit, with Rohit back to batting in the nets.

Without Rohit, MI had trouble balancing their line-up against PBKS on Thursday. Quinton de Kock came into the side and scored a brilliant comeback hundred, but that meant Trent Boult sat out to keep the overseas-player count down to four. The Indian player who came in for Boult, Mayank Rawat, had an undistinguished debut, coming in at No. 8 to occupy the non-striker's end with one ball left of MI's innings, and not bowling his offspin at all. Rohit will likely return in Ryan Rickelton's place with Boult or Corbin Bosch coming back to strengthen the pace bowling. MI may have a hard choice to make between Santner and AM Ghazanfar, who took two powerplay wickets against PBKS.

Mumbai Indians (probable): 1 Quinton de Kock (wk), 2 Rohit Sharma, 3 Suryakumar Yadav, 4 Naman Dhir, 5 Tilak Varma, 6 Hardik Pandya (capt), 7 Sherfane Rutherford, 8 Mitchell Santner/AM Ghazanfar, 9 Trent Boult/Corbin Bosch, 10 Shardul Thakur, 11 Deepak Chahar, 12 Jasprit Bumrah.

In the spotlight

He's flown under the radar somewhat because he hasn't taken a lot of wickets, but Mohammed Siraj's new-ball bowling has been a joy to watch. Of all bowlers to have bowled at least 30 balls in the phase this season, only Mohammed Shami, Rasikh Salam and Sunil Narine have better powerplay economy rates than Siraj's 7.41. He's only taken two powerplay wickets in five games, but wicket counts are often deceptive in T20, and he could find his reward if he sends down another spell of buzzing new-ball swing on Monday.

Sherfane Rutherford is a superb T20 player, and perhaps one miscast as a finisher at MI. He was unlucky to come in late against PBKS and come up against Marco Jansen and Arshdeep Singh who kept nailing reverse-swinging yorkers against him, and in MI's previous game, against RCB, he scored an unbeaten 31-ball 71 but the contest was almost already lost by the time he walked in at No. 6. It's a tricky situation for MI, because they have now moved Naman Dhir up to No. 4, and all three of Hardik Pandya, Tilak Varma and Rutherford prefer entry points that allow them to get their eye in before the slog overs begin. Can MI find a way to unlock Rutherford's full potential against his old team?

Stats and trivia

• GT have used the same four fast bowlers in all their games - Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna and Ashok Sharma - and they have been the best wicket-taking fast-bowling force of IPL 2026. GT's combined pace-bowling average of 24.89 is the best in the league.
• MI are the worst-performing team by that metric - by a long way. Their fast bowlers average an eye-watering 65.81 for the season. PBKS, the next-worst team on this list, average a far more respectable 37.41.
• Three MI fast bowlers - Trent Boult (110.00), Deepak Chahar (87.00) and Hardik Pandya (67.00) - have 50-plus averages this season, and Bumrah is yet to take a wicket after bowling 19 overs.

Pitch and conditions

Pitch No. 5 in Ahmedabad has tended to favour the team batting first in recent years. Across the last seven matches played here - three each in IPLs 2024 and 2025 and two in this year's T20 World Cup including the Afghanistan-South Africa epic - have brought four outright wins for the team batting first, one tie, and two wins for the chasing team. Across these seven games - two of which were day games - the first-innings run rate (9.62) has been significantly higher than the second-innings run rate (9.14). There could be a chance, then, that the team winning the toss chooses to bat. Extreme heat in Ahmedabad - a maximum of 40 degrees Celsius is forecast for Monday - could, however, increase the chance of dew.

Thank you, Parm for the thread and for tagging.

Come on MI, we have to win today.