new delhi, April 30
Gujarat Titans (GT) won the toss and elected to bowl first against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Match 42 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday. Both teams have gone in with unchanged XIs.
GT captain Shubman Gill said the decision was influenced by the expected assistance for pacers early on and the likelihood of dew later in the evening.
“We are going to bowl first. The surface gives swing in the first 4-5 overs. Want to chase in case there is dew. These two games will determine how far we go in the tournament,” Gill said.
RCB skipper Rajat Patidar admitted they would have preferred to bowl as well but backed his side to post a competitive total.
“We were looking to field first. I don’t think the grass cover will help much. Hope we put up a good total on the board. The way we played the first half of IPL was good to see,” Patidar said.
Both teams come into this clash in strong form. Gujarat Titans are placed fifth on the points table with four wins from eight matches and are coming off an eight-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru sit second with six wins in eight matches and registered a dominant nine-wicket win over Delhi Capitals in their previous outing.
RCB also won the earlier meeting between the two sides this season by five wickets.
Playing XIs
Royal Challengers Bengaluru:
Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar (c), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma
Impact substitutes: Rasikh Dar, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer
Gujarat Titans:
Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar Impact substitutes: Rahul Tewatia, Anuj Rawat, Glenn Phillips, Kulwant Khejroliya, Nishant Sindhu
