Vikram Solanki could hardly have been more relaxed after Gujarat Titans beat Rajasthan Royals to book another IPL final. Once the formalities of the press conference started he went straight to the point: “He knows how to deal with all of those matters – success, failure, professional sport is about dealing with exactly that,” he said of Shubman Gill, who will lead GT into Sunday’s decider.
Gill and B Sai Sudharsan had just underpinned a chase of 215 with a 167-run stand made in only 77 balls. Gill finished on 109 from 51; Sai Sudharsan chipped in with 58 off 32. Big numbers, again, but questions remain about strike-rate ceilings because, on quieter nights, both still look inclined to play percentage cricket. Solanki was having none of that.
“I thought all of their qualities were on display today. And it’s been a good number of years that that partnership has been flourishing,” he reminded reporters. “It is on the back of a lot of hard work. I can only imagine all of the work that Shubman has put in throughout his career to get to where he is as far as his batting is concerned. He’s an exceptional young man. And sometimes you have to realise he’s still a young man. And be playing the cricket that he is, to be batting the way he is, is just phenomenal.”
The numbers back him up. In four seasons together Gill and Sai Sudharsan have piled up 2944 IPL runs, second only to AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli (3123). That older partnership had ten seasons to do the job; the GT pair are only in season four. Last year Sai Sudharsan took the Orange Cap with 759 runs, Gill finishing fourth with 650. This time Gill (722) sits behind only Mumbai’s Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, while Sai Sudharsan (710) is one good knock away from passing both.
“And Sai is no less so. He might be a little younger in his journey, but you can see that he takes a fine example from Shubman and understands that actually his skills are what you and I might view as batsmanship, the sort of traditional form of batting,” Solanki said. “But there is no doubt in my mind that if a situation requires them to up the run rate and the wicket actually suits them playing that way, then they can adapt. And I think that’s their finest quality, their ability to adapt, given any sort of situation, given any wicket, given any opposition. That along with the fact that they have an immense appetite for run-scoring. Good habits to have.”
Run appetites aside, strike-rates still get airtime. Gill has scored at 159.2 this season, Sai Sudharsan at 145.0. Sai Sudharsan’s power-play rate (139.2) just beats Gill’s (134.6), but the captain tends to accelerate hardest after ten overs. Tom Moody, speaking on the host broadcaster, reckons the dynamic works precisely because of that difference. “Gill sets the tempo late, Sai Sudharsan up front – it’s not as orthodox as people think,” Moody observed. Aaron Finch agreed, adding that Gill “knows exactly when to go”.
Work ethic is the second theme. “You go back to his work ethic, it’s second to none. From moment that he joined us – you could see he didn’t obviously make a start straightaway – it was very evident that he was an exceptional talent,” Solanki said of Sai Sudharsan. “There are a lot of talented people, but perhaps some don’t have the same work ethic that he does. He’s almost somebody that we have to hold back, which is a great quality.”
Inside the camp they talk about optional training being, for Gill and Sai Sudharsan, effectively compulsory. Both still hit the bowling machine after matches, a routine Gill began during India Under-19 days. Former GT coach Ashish Nehra calls it “batting fitness”, essentially muscle memory for all ranges of pace. It might explain why Gill’s late-innings hitting – criticised in 2024 – now looks cleaner.
Can the model hold in the final? Chennai’s black-soil surface has grip; defending champions Sunrisers Hyderabad have three spinners. Solanki was pragmatic. “Finals demand reading conditions quickly. If 170 is enough we’ll aim for 170, if it’s 215 again so be it,” he offered, choosing against a bullish promise.
Gill, unsurprisingly, stayed in routine. He skipped the media mix zone, preferring a quick chat with the team analyst before a loosener in the indoor nets. A team-mate revealed the conversation centred on where Hyderabad’s spinners release the ball. Small margins – but that is where Gill and Sai Sudharsan have lived for the past four seasons.
One small footnote: their 167 against Rajasthan began with four singles in five balls. Nothing flashy, a look at the pitch, then the leap. The partnership’s hallmark, really – steady look, then the onslaught.
A few more of those on Sunday would put GT in range of a third title in five seasons. If that happens, Solanki’s words might sound prophetic rather than protective. Either way, the appetite remains – and that, as the director of cricket keeps saying, is “a good habit to have”.
