IPL 2026: Rajasthan Royals defeat Gujarat Titans in thriller, snatch victory off last ball

Ahmedabad: The match between the Gujarat Titans and the Rajasthan Royals proved to be the most thrilling contest of IPL 2026 so far. Rajasthan secured a 6-run victory on the very last ball of the match. Batting first, the Rajasthan Royals posted a total of 210 runs for the loss of 6 wickets. In the final over, Gujarat required 11 runs to win. Tushar Deshpande conceded just four runs, thereby sealing the victory for the Rajasthan Royals. The Gujarat team could only manage to score 204 runs for the loss of 8 wickets. This marks Rajasthan's second victory, while Gujarat has suffered defeats in both of their matches so far.

How did Dhruv Jurel and Yashasvi Jaiswal perform?

Having won the toss and elected to bat first, the Rajasthan Royals got off to a magnificent start. Vaibhav Suryavanshi and Yashasvi Jaiswal appeared to be in excellent form, combining to add 70 runs for the first wicket in just 6.2 overs. Vaibhav scored 31 runs off 18 balls, playing at a blistering strike rate of 172. Meanwhile, Yashasvi Jaiswal played a powerful innings of 55 runs off 36 balls. Vaibhav's innings featured 5 fours and one six, while Yashasvi's half-century knock included 6 fours and 3 sixes. Captain Riyan Parag failed to make a significant impact with the bat; he fell victim to Prasidh Krishna after scoring 8 runs off 4 balls.

Shimron Hetmyer got off to a promising start, but after scoring 18 runs off 8 balls, he handed a catch to Mohammed Siraj off the bowling of Ashok Sharma. Kagiso Rabada dismissed Donovan Ferreira, sending him back to the pavilion with a score of just one run. However, Dhruv Jurel held firm at one end, displaying excellent batting prowess to play a half-century innings. Jurel played a commanding knock of 75 runs off 42 balls, an innings that featured 5 fours and 5 sixes. Ravindra Jadeja (7 runs) and Jofra Archer (1 run) remained unbeaten at the end of the innings. For Gujarat, Kagiso Rabada was the top bowler, claiming 2 wickets. Meanwhile, Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, and Ashok Sharma each took one wicket.

How did Rashid and Rabada boost Gujarat Titans?

Chasing a massive target of 211 runs, the Gujarat Titans got off to a flying start. Kumar Kushagra—playing in place of Shubman Gill—and Sai Sudharsan combined to add 78 runs for the first wicket in just 7.6 overs. Kushagra contributed 18 runs. Sudharsan, meanwhile, appeared to be in excellent form, playing a powerful innings of 73 runs off 44 balls. During his knock, Sudharsan struck 9 fours and 3 sixes. Jos Buttler failed to capitalize on a good start and was dismissed after scoring 26 runs off 14 balls. Glenn Phillips could not make much of an impact with the bat and was out for just 3 runs. Washington Sundar managed to score only 4 runs. Rahul Tewatia was dismissed after scoring 12 runs off 6 balls, while Shahrukh Khan scored 11 runs off 4 balls.

In the final overs, Rashid Khan and Kagiso Rabada forged a blistering partnership of 43 runs off 30 balls, but they were unable to guide their team to victory. Rashid scored 24 runs off 16 balls, while Rabada remained unbeaten with 23 runs off 16 balls. Jofra Archer and Tushar Deshpande delivered a brilliant bowling performance in the final two overs. For the Rajasthan Royals, Ravi Bishnoi was the standout bowler, claiming 4 wickets for 41 runs in his 4-over spell. Nandre Burger and Tushar Deshpande each took one wicket.