Why Shubman Gill is not playing today’s match against Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2026?
Published - 04 Apr 2026, 07:21 PM | Updated - 04 Apr 2026, 07:57 PM
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The TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the second match on Saturday, was between the Gujarat Titans (GT) and the Rajasthan Royals (RR). It is match no.9 of the IPL at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad. There was a shocking picture of Rashid Khan as he was present as the GT captain instead of Shubman Gill.
Rajasthan Royals captain Riyan Parag won the toss and opted to bat. “We are going to be batting first. We got to assess and adapt to different conditions. Hopefully we will put up a good score around 210 and defend it later on. I want it to be a team that plays in all conditions,” Parag said.
Know the reason why Shubman Gill is not playing vs RR
As Rashid Khan gave an update about Shubman Gill having a back spasm. Shubman Gill has been suffering from a ‘muscle spasm’, as per the stand-in captain Rashid Khan. “He just got a bit of a muscle spasm, hopefully he’ll be back soon," Rashid said.
The two teams started the campaign very differently in the IPL. RR won their first game against Chennai Super Kings (CSK), and GT came in this game after the loss against Punjab Kings (PBKS). This is the first game for GT at their home stadium. However, Shubman Gill’s absence will be a big loss to GT’s batting line-up.
Shubman Gill was key for GT's success last season
As Gill and Sai Sudharsan gave Titans the start they needed back in last season, and the majority of the matches by GT were won after these two batters had the starts for the franchise. Shubman Gill, as a captain, had a decent two seasons. Last season, the team qualified for the playoffs, but were eliminated after losing to the Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Eliminator.
Last season, he scored 650 runs in the 2025 IPL season for the Gujarat Titans. He has been exceptionally consistent, following up his record-setting 2023 season (890 runs). However, as a captain, he has not won the IPL trophy. This season, he would like to win a trophy.
GT will be hopeful that their regular captain is back in the next game against the Delhi Capitals, as it will be crucial games, with the kind of form Capitals are in.
RR openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Vaibhav Sooryavanshi are off to a flying start as the two Southpaws are striking the GT bowlers all around the park. They have brought up the fifty partnership within 4.3 overs.
GT vs RR Playing XIs
GT playing 11: Kumar Kushagra, Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler(w), Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan(c), Kagiso Rabada, Ashok Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
RR playing 11: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (capt), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
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