Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin reckons the Gujarat Titans would never have been able to defeat the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Gujarat Titans started the game off well as opening batters Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan put on 128 runs for the opening wicket, but the visitors did not get the desired finish and had to settle for a total of 205/3. RCB then chased the total down with seven balls to spare, owing to half-centuries by Virat Kohli (81) and Devdutt Padikkal (57).
Ashwin reckons the Gujarat Titans have some limitations in their gameplay, but they still manage to put other teams under pressure thanks to their bowling attack, comprising Prasidh Krishna, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada and Rashid Khan.
However, the former India spinner also believes that the Gujarat Titans have not been able to stay very consistent because of the dip in the form of Rashid.
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“Gujarat Titans, we always talk about them. Their template is this. This team never looks to do anything extraordinary. But somehow, they can put pressure on the other teams because of their bowling attack. Their problem is that when Hardik Pandya won the title with GT, he had one champion bowler, Rashid Khan. The teams are now hesitant in going after him,” said Ashwin on his YouTube channel ‘Ash Ki Baat’.
“It is about his finish and whip in the action. From the time the arm speed has slowed, the mystery factor has been taken out of Rashid's bowling. He bowls in an attacking manner and never looks to bowl defensively. I feel the Gujarat Titans have limitations. I think Gujarat would never have been able to defeat RCB because RCB is an absolute bullet train. They always look to finish the game off early,” he added.
‘Action’
{{/usCountry}}“It is about his finish and whip in the action. From the time the arm speed has slowed, the mystery factor has been taken out of Rashid's bowling. He bowls in an attacking manner and never looks to bowl defensively. I feel the Gujarat Titans have limitations. I think Gujarat would never have been able to defeat RCB because RCB is an absolute bullet train. They always look to finish the game off early,” he added.
‘Action’
{{/usCountry}}Ashwin also highlighted that Rashid is unable to complete his action, saying that this is natural when a player returns from an injury.
“He has to learn when to bowl that attacking ball and defend. The tournament started well for Rashid Khan; his action was going on nicely. In the last 2-3 games, his actions are not getting completed. This can happen when you have a sore back, or you are coming back from a surgery; these things can happen if the strength is not there,” said Ashwin.
The former India spinner also said that the Gujarat Titans weren't out of form with the bat, as they don't have the arsenal to score 220 or more. “If Gujarat Titans are 15-20 runs, I wouldn't be that worried because I expected this out of him. They cannot score more than this. I expected them to get 190-195, but Jason Holder managed to get a few shots away off the spinner in the final over,” said Ashwin.
With the win over the Gujarat Titans, RCB moved to the second spot in the points table with 10 points from seven matches. Kohli was adjudged as Player of the Match for his 81-run knock off 44 balls.