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Gujarat Titans' (GT) struggling middle-order will face a tough test in their upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match on Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Gujarat Titans, led by Shubman Gill, are currently placed fifth on the IPL 2026 points table with five wins from nine matches. According to Cricbuzz statistics, the team's middle-order batters (number 4 to 8) have scored the fewest runs (425) in the tournament so far, along with the second-lowest batting average (22.36) and strike rate (135.78) among all teams. They have also hit the fewest sixes, with just 13 so far this season. The bulk of the scoring has been done by their top-order--Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler. Gill leads the run-scoring charts for the franchise with 373 runs in eight matches so far in the IPL 2026 so far. Sudharsan, on the other hand, has scored 328 runs in this season. England's Jos Buttler is third on the list, with 309 runs in nine innings. Their middle-order, on the other hand, consisting of Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Jason Holder and Rashid Khan, have only scored 425 runs. Against the Punjab Kings, who currently sit at the top of the table with just one defeat in eight matches, the Gujarat Titans will be hoping their middle order finds form and gets back on track. One factor working in favour of the Gujarat Titans ahead of their clash with the Punjab Kings is their strong chasing record. Since 2022, Gujarat Titans have been the most successful team while chasing in the IPL, winning 26 of their 39 matches. In comparison, Punjab Kings have secured 20 wins from 32 chases over the same period. Punjab Kings, on the other hand, will take confidence from their strong Powerplay performance. They have the highest scoring rate among all teams in the first six overs this season, averaging 12.40 runs per over. In contrast, Gujarat Titans have a more modest Powerplay run rate of 9.75, which places them sixth overall in this phase. (ANI)
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