Shubman Gill’s Gujarat Titans (GT) are bowling first at the iconic venue of the Eden Gardens against the might of the Kolkata Knight Riders in Match 60 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, with both teams looking to solidify their positioning on the table. Ahead of the match, fans wondered whether Varun Chakravarthy, KKR’s lead spinner, would be able to make it to the eleven.
KKR vs GT: Toss Update
The toss went in favour of the visiting Gujarat side, as Gill confirmed his decision to field first against a formidable KKR batting lineup. GT, coming off five consecutive wins in the preceding matches, did not make any changes to their playing XI, while the Knight Riders had to make one change.
KKR vs GT: Chakravarthy comes in, but what about Pathirana?
While GT are unchanged for this game, it is Chakravarthy who is fit again and has made his return to the field at the Eden. Meanwhile, the Ajinkya Rahane-led side has named only three overseas players in their line-up, which means that Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana might come in as an impact player to play his first match of the season. However, Vaibhav Arora is another option KKR could mull over.
KKR vs GT: What did the captains say?
Shubman Gill, Gujarat Titans’ captain,
“We’re gonna bowl first. Yeah, it does look like that (pitch having moisture), there was a little bit of rain around yesterday and it looks a little bit sticky, we are hoping that it’s going to get better in the second innings.
“(On GT’s bowlers dominating and winning five on the trot) Yeah, definitely, we believe that, batsmen do win you matches, but if you want to win championships, your bowling unit has to be in form and luckily for us, they are firing all cylinders. Our bowling unit has been top-notch this season. The momentum is with us and we have to keep doing the things consistently that we have been doing well.
“This is not the stage, this is not the time to take any teams lightly, but we’re hoping to win the next two and hopefully be stable in the top two positions. It gives the edge to the teams that finish in the top two. You get one extra match. Hopefully, we won’t play the extra match, but it does give you an edge, you can go out there and play your game. We’re going with the same team.”
Ajinkya Rahane, Kolkata Knight Riders’ captain,
“Taking one game at a time, but as you rightly mentioned, we have to win three games and then see what happens. It’s important as a team that we’ve been playing really good cricket, winning four games out of five; the combination is also there, and guys are actually clicking together. We just have to keep it really simple, focus on this game, and then take it forward.
“Absolutely (we have to be consistent) with all the parts. As I said, we’ve been playing really good cricket in those five games; the guys are taking very good confidence from the positives from the last game. It’s just very simple for us now. It’s one game at a time; win this one and look up for the next two games. We were looking to field it as well.
“(On the surface) There’s a little bit of moisture; there was rain last night, heavy rain, so I don’t think it will change that much, considering there is a breeze going on. I’m not too sure about the dew factor as well, but whatever it is, we want to give our best in our bat, and then when we defend the total, give our best in those 20 overs. Varun comes in; Varun is fit.
KKR vs GT: Playing XIs
Gujarat Titans
Shubman Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Nishant Sindhu, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, R Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj
Impact Substitutes: Rahul Tewatia, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Prasidh Krishna and Kumar Kushagra
Kolkata Knight Riders
Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (capt), Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Cameron Green, Rinku Singh, Manish Pandey, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakravarthy, Kartik Tyagi, Saurabh Dubey
Impact Substitutes: Vaibhav Arora, Ramandeep Singh, Tejasvi Dahiya, Rovman Powell and Matheesha Pathirana
