Tactical missteps or lack of trust? Shubman Gill's gameplan against Punjab Kings raises several questions
Shubman Gill (Source: Getty Images)
Published - 01 Apr 2026, 02:28 PM• Read time - 2 mins
Gujarat Titans’ IPL 2026 campaign began with an intriguing tactical subplot. Put in to bat by Punjab Kings skipper Shreyas Iyer, Titans mustered 162/6, with Titans captain Shubman Gill himself top‑scoring with 39 off 27. But the real talking point that emerged out of the game wasn’t the batting card; it was Gill’s handling of his bowling resources.
Despite having the Purple Cap holder, Prasidh Krishna, from last season in his ranks, Gill held him back until the 13th over. By then, Punjab were cruising at 110/2, requiring just 53 off 48 balls at a run‑a‑ball tempo (6.62 per over).
The decision was baffling: Prasidh had scalped 25 wickets in IPL 2025 at an economy of 8.27, yet was introduced when the game was already tilted. His eventual 3/29, including the wicket of Iyer on the first ball of his spell and a double strike in the 15th, was too little, too late.
Equally perplexing was Gill’s under‑utilisation of Mohammed Siraj. The seasoned seamer bowled just two overs upfront, conceding 15 runs at 7.50 with six dot balls, but was never reintroduced into the attack.
When the pendulum swung after Prasidh’s burst, Gill could have tightened the screws by turning back to his most experienced quick. Instead, Siraj’s two overs remained unused, a tactical void that Punjab exploited to close out the chase.
These choices raise the inevitable question: were they tactical miscalculations, or a reflection of Gill’s lack of trust in his strike bowlers?
Either way, the decisions proved costly, leaving the Titans’ campaign opener defined not by their batting effort, but by their captain’s puzzling bowling management.
Interestingly, during the post-match presentation, Gill happened to acknowledge that he could have brought Prasidh in early, but went on to suggest that things appear fairly straightforward in hindsight than they were in real time.
"I could've (on delaying Prasidh Krishna's introduction), but he came at the right time, took wickets and kept us in the game until the 17th and 18th over. All ifs and buts, but at that time, we thought, you know, with the wicket going a little bit slow, maybe a bowler who's quick and skinny might get us a few wickets," said Gill.
