IPL 2026: Gurjapneet, Short included as CSK elect to bowl first against GT; Prasidh returns
Ahmedabad, May 21
Chennai Super Kings have handed opportunities to Gurjapneet Singh and Matthew Short as captain Ruturaj Gaikwad won the toss and elected to bowl first against Gujarat Titans in Match 66 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday.
CSK head into their final league game knowing that a defeat will shut the door on their playoff hopes. Injuries have plagued their campaign, leaving them clinging to slim mathematical chances of entering the last four stage.
Though a victory here will not guarantee them a top‑four berth, as CSK have to be dependent on other results to go in their favour. After winning the toss, Gaikwad said Gurjapneet and Short are included in place of Akeal Hosein and Prashant Veer.
"There will be some pace and bounce, and we want to explore it early on. It is about trusting the process, and we didn't get the results our way. We want to keep it simple and turn it around," he said.
GT, meanwhile, will be keen to arrest any slide in momentum ahead of the playoffs, and a win over CSK would also strengthen their push for a top‑two finish. Skipper Shubman Gill said pacer Prasidh Krishna replaces R Sai Kishore in their playing eleven when the GT bowling innings comes.
"We'd have bowled first. Doesn't make a difference as there's not much dew. It's all about keeping the intensity up. Our fielding hasn't been on par in the last couple of seasons.
"Our bowling has been right up there, and batting has been good too. All three departments need to come together. Just because we have a Q, doesn't mean the job is done. Hope for three more good games," he said.
The pitch report by Graeme Swann and Aaron Finch said Thursday's game will be played on a red soil pitch, with square boundaries at 62 and 70 metres respectively, while the ground boundary is at 72 metres. Both opined that the pitch having green grass just tells them that it will hold enough pace in what is expected to be a good batting wicket.
Playing XIs:
Chennai Super Kings: Sanju Samson (wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad (captain), Urvil Patel, Dewald Brevis, Shivam Dube, Matthew Short, Anshul Kamboj, Noor Ahmad, Spencer Johnson, Mukesh Choudhary, and Gurjapneet Singh
Impact substitutes: Kartik Sharma, Macneil Noronha, Sarfaraz Khan, Kuldip Yadav, and Aman Khan
Gujarat Titans: B Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill (captain), Jos Buttler (wk), Nishant Sindhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Kagiso Rabada, Arshad Khan, and Mohammed Siraj
Impact substitutes: Prasidh Krishna, Anuj Rawat, Glenn Phillips, Kulwant Khejroliya, and Kumar Kushagra
— IANS
Reader Comments
Honestly, playing Sanju Samson as wicketkeeper and dropping Prashant Veer feels like a panic move. But Ruturaj's captaincy has been solid despite the results. GT looking scary with that bowling attack - Rashid, Rabada, Siraj, and now Prasidh as impact sub? That's insane depth. CSK need a miracle now 🙏
Red soil pitch at Ahmedabad usually means good bounce - that's why Gaikwad chose to bowl first. But 62m square boundaries? That's short! Batsmen will feast. Interesting that GT went with Washington Sundar over Sai Kishore - Gill thinking about batting depth. This match will be decided by who uses their impact sub better.
Why is CSK persisting with Anshul Kamboj? Hasn't done much this season. And where is Pathirana? They needed his yorkers on this pitch. The writing was on the wall when they lost early games - now they're depending on other results like typical end-of-season drama. At least give young kids like Gurjapneet a proper run!
Very smart from Shubman Gill - acknowledging their fielding has been poor. That's been GT's weak link for two seasons now. They have match-winners with ball and bat, but dropping catches costs you in crunch games. Also weird to see CSK's XI without any big Indian batting name except Ruturaj and Sanju - where's the middle order? 🤔
Matthew Short getting a game on
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