Gujarat Titans captain Shibman Gill (AP Photo/Bikas Das)
Shabman Gul blamed a poor fielding display by Gujarat Titans for their 29-run loss against Kolkata Knight Riders, saying the team “didn’t deserve to win” after dropping several catches during the high-scoring encounter at the Eden Gardens on Saturday in IPL 2026.GT’s five-match winning streak ended despite a spirited chase led by Gill’s 85 runs. Jose ButlerK’s 57 and Sai Sudharsan’s unbeaten 53. Chasing a mammoth 248, Gujarat eventually finished at 218/4 as KKR stayed alive in the playoff race.Reflecting on the loss, Gill felt that Gujarat had actually done well with the bat but failed miserably in the field.“Looking at the wicket, 200-210 was an even score but we dropped too many catches, the pitch was good, it was strange but I thought we batted well to reach the score,” Gayle said after the match.GT’s fielding mistakes proved costly as KKR made the most of the missed opportunities. Finn Allen He was dropped twice before scoring a brilliant 93 off just 35 balls with 10 sixes, while Angkrish Raghunshi and Cameron Greene He too was given a reprieve before scoring an unbeaten fifty.Gill admitted that the Titans failed to maintain the standards they had set earlier in the tournament.“No worries but our fielding could have been a lot better. We set a certain standard and dropped 3-setters – we didn’t deserve to win this,” Gill said.Despite the loss, the Gujarat skipper believes the defeat can serve as a timely wake-up call ahead of the playoffs.“Looking at it that way, it’s better to play a game like this now than in the qualifiers,” he added.Earlier in the chase, GT looked well in control and Gill led the counter-attack in style. The opener hit five fours and seven sixes in his 49-ball 85, while Buttler slowly found his rhythm after a slow start. Siddharsen, who was briefly retired hurt after being hit on the elbow, later returned and completed a fighting half-century.At 177/1 after 16 overs, Gujarat still looked capable of chasing the first target. Sunil Narayan Produced a crucial over to swing the momentum back in KKR’s favour.KKR piled up 247/2 after Gayle was sent in to bat first. Allen’s explosive score took the hosts to their highest score of the season before Raghuvanshi’s unbeaten 82 and Green’s unbeaten 52.The defeat left Gujarat Titans second on the IPL 2026 points table with 16 points from 13 matches, while KKR edged closer to the play-off spots with a much-needed win.Gill said the Titans will now focus on recovery before returning home for their next match.“I think rest for a few days and recover, go back to Ahmedabad, see how the wicket is and then plan accordingly (for the next match),” Gill said.
