Among the two teams added to the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2022, the Gujarat Titans (GT) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), GT has been more consistent. With a 75% win percentage, GT even won the IPL in their first season, breaking the 5-year streak of two IPL giants, MI and CSK, who won 5 IPL trophies between them from 2017 to 2021.The Titans finished their second season (2023) as runner-up, having been defeated by CSK on the last ball. Their win percentage in 2023 dropped slightly to 64.7With only 5 wins in 14 matches and a win percentage of 41.7, the 2024 season was a disaster for the Gujarat Titans as they finished 8th in the point table. This was also the season when their then-captain Hardik Pandya was traded to the Mumbai Indians, and GT had a new captain in Shubman Gill.However, GT had a good season last year after the mega auction and qualified for the playoffs, but were defeated in the Eliminator by the Mumbai Indians (MI).As teams prepare to rebuild their squads and fill gaps for the next season (2026) in the auction next week, December 16, here’s a look at GT’s strength, the gaps they need to fill, and the players they would like to include in the squad.
Gujarat Titans’ Strengths
The biggest strength of the Titans last season was their top-order batting, which included Sai Sudarshan, Subhman Gill, and Jos Buttler. Each of them scored more than 500 runs last season, and also scored them quickly. In 15 matches, Shubman Gill and Sai Sudarshan scored 650 and 759 runs at strike rates of 155.88 and 156.17, respectively. Jos Buttler scored 538 runs in 13 innings at a strike rate of 163.03.Combined, they also hit 69 sixes in the season. The GT would believe, and hope, that their top three fire on all cylinders in the upcoming season, too.
Where did they struggle?
The top three batted magnificently all season last year; however, consequently, what it also did was that GT’s middle and lower middle-order didn’t get enough chances. And when they did, it looked like they were not at their best.Sherfane Rutherford (256 runs in 10 innings at 151.38) was one of their strong points in the middle order, but GT have traded him to Mumbai Indians before the auction, so the hole in their middle order has only gotten bigger.An even bigger question GT faces is that of Rashid Khan. The ace leggie had a rare off-season last year, and his form became a cause of concern for the franchise.In 15 matches, the spinner from Afghanistan managed to take only 9 wickets and conceded runs at an economy of 9.35 with an average of 57.11.The bowling woes for GT were not limited to just Rashid Khan. While Prasidh Krishna had a prolific season, taking 25 wickets with an economy of 8.27, he did not get enough support from the others.If we exclude the Eliminator, the GT bowlers’ season can be divided into two parts – the first five and the next nine matches. In the first 5 matches, GT bowlers took 37 wickets and conceded only at 8.72 runs per over. In the next nine league matches, they managed to take only 45 wickets and gave away runs at a 9.87 economy rate.In the first five league matches, GT took 10 wickets in the Powerplay. While in the next nine league games, they managed to take only 9.
Gaps to fill at IPL Auction
At the upcoming auction, GT will look to strengthen their middle and lower-middle order and add an experienced fast bowler capable of bowling at the death.The Titans would love to get the services of Australian fast-bowling all-rounder Cameron Green, but with just Rs 12.9 crore of purse remaining, that would be a long shot. So they will have to look for other options for their middle order problem, someone like David Miller could well be in GT’s radar.Among the fast bowlers, Anrich Nortje, Matheesa Pathirana, Mustafizur Rahman, and Alzarri Joseph are among the options available in the auction, but with the limited purse available, it would be interesting to see which among them GT will be able to include in their squad, if they manage to include at all.
