Former Australian cricketer and current Lucknow Supergiants Global Director of Cricket Tom Moody Gujarat Titans are believed to have been badly exposed by a flat batting surface during their loss against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2026 Qualifier 1. RCB booked their place in the second consecutive IPL final after completely dominating Dharamshala on Tuesday. Led by a sensational unbeaten 93 from the captain. Rajat PatidarBengaluru posted a record play-off total of 254/5 before bowling Gujarat out for 162 to seal an emphatic 92-run victory. Analyzing the one-sided contest on ESPNcricinfo’s Time Out Show, Moody explained that Gujarat’s bowling attack becomes too predictable on batting-friendly wickets where there is little seam movement or swing available. Moody said his predictability hurts him when things don’t go his way. He compared Gujarat’s bowling struggles to Sunrisers Hyderabad’s batting problems on difficult pitches, and suggested that both teams rely too much on specific conditions to dominate the game. “It’s a bit like Sunrisers Hyderabad. When the surface starts to work a bit, their batting line-up struggles. Gujarat is almost the bowling version of that,” Moody explained. According to Moody, GT’s pace attack only becomes dangerous when the pitch provides support. He pointed out that bowlers like Mohammad Siraj and Kagiso Rabada. They are at their best when they can attack hard lengths through the air or with movement off the surface. He said that when the pitch is in motion, Siraj and Rabada become extremely difficult to face as they hit those tough lengths and create problems in and out of the bat. “But on a very flat surface like this, they become vulnerable because they don’t have extreme change, slow balls, or deception as their main strengths,” Moody added. RCB recognized these limitations early and attacked relentlessly from the start. Virat Kohli Set the platform with a blistering 43, while Devdutt Padikal kept the scoring rate high during a blistering 72-run partnership. Although Jason Holder briefly brought Gujarat back into the game with two wickets in three balls, Patidar and Krunal Pandya completely changed the momentum with a brutal stand of 95 off just 47 balls. Modi also emphasized that Gujarat lacks bowlers who can consistently deceive the batsmen with slower deliveries and variations on flat decks. “They don’t really have the slow ball specialist or the bowlers with the deceptive changes of pace that can constantly create doubt in the batsman’s mind on flat wickets,” Moody said. “That’s why on surfaces where the ball isn’t doing much, teams can line them up more comfortably,” he added. GT’s problems were compounded by a poor fielding display. Dropped catches, misfields and extra runs allowed RCB to race to the highest total recorded in the history of the IPL playoffs. Captain Shabman Gul Admitted after the match that Gujarat were not good enough under pressure, especially in the field. In reply, the Titans were never really in the chase after falling to 51/5 inside the powerplay. Rahul Tiotia fought hard with 68, but the damage was already done as RCB’s bowling attack completed a dominant all-round performance. While Bengaluru now head into the IPL 2026 final full of confidence, the Gujarat titans must regroup quickly ahead of their next knockout clash in Chandigarh.
