A self-assured Shubman Gill told the press that he has nothing left to prove on the IPL front, as he gears up to lead Gujarat Titans in the 2026 season after a first playoff appearance as captain in the year prior.
Speaking to the media in a press conference alongside coach Ashish Nehra, Gill was asked about the expectations from him in particular, given his status as Indian Test captain and the in-and-out he has faced in the T20I setup in recent months.
Asked about whether he heads into the IPL 2026 season with a chip on his shoulder, Gill answered: “Not at all, sir. I think if you look at the past three or four seasons, I have the most runs in the IPL. I don’t have anything to prove, in this season particularly.”
Gill had a sensational 2025 as part of the top order trio for GT alongside Sai Sudharsan, who won the Orange Cap, and Jos Buttler. This top three was the core for an otherwise underbaked batting unit, all scoring piles of runs; Gill contributed 650 in 15 innings, at a healthy strike-rate of 155.
Gill sits ahead of Kohli in IPL runs over last 4 years
This season followed a 2023 Orange Cap-winning performance from Gill, a historic season in which he plundered 890 runs enroute to the final. In fact, since moving to GT in 2022, Gill does top the IPL scorers list, narrowly ahead of Virat Kohli: in four seasons, he has scored 2449 runs, at a strike-rate a notch below 150 and with four centuries to his name.
In those four years, GT have reached the playoffs thrice, the finals twice, and won the trophy once – consistency in performances that Gill pointed out as an indication of the team’s strength, and his role within it.
“The four years I have played here, we have done decently well as a team, I think I’ve done decently well as a batsman. I don’t think I need to prove to anyone my worth,” said Gill bullishly.
“I need to do what I have been doing for the past four years and as a team we need to be consistent, which I think we have been. If we continue doing that sooner or later we will win that trophy once more,” promised the GT captain.
GT will be in the conversation again in 2026 thanks to a terrific bowling group, especially if Rashid Khan will come into his regular form. Jos Buttler has looked off-colour and a lot will depend on him – but the question Indian fans will be asking Gill is whether even his level of excellence has been good enough, or if he should push himself to do more after being removed from the scheme of things in T20Is.
