Matthew Hayden Calls On Gujarat Titans To Resolve Their Team's Biggest Concern Ahead of IPL 2026

Former Australian cricketer Matthew Hayden has urged the Gujarat Titans to fix one of their biggest concerns ahead of the IPL 2026 season. The veteran wants the one-time IPL champions to stop being overly reliant on their top order and develop the middle order as a reliable unit.

Throughout the IPL 2025 season, the Gujarat Titans encountered a significant issue with their batting unit. The middle order looked particularly dilapidated and has underperformed throughout the campaign.

Matthew Hayden Singles Out Gujarat Titans’ Achilles’ Heel, Wants Them To Fix It

Matthew Hayden has offered a key suggestion for the Gujarat Titans' inconsistency issues and has advised them to reconstruct their middle order ahead of the IPL 2026 season.

The former Australian cricketer added that the over-reliance on top-order batters like Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan has become the team's most significant weakness.

"Gujarat Titans have a fantastic top order with captain Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan, who were the highest-scoring opening pair last season.

"However, their middle order struggled heavily, with only Jos Buttler performing consistently. This over-reliance on their openers became a clear weakness. In the mini-auction, GT should release underperforming players and those who didn't get opportunities to rebuild their middle order effectively," Matthew Hayden said on JioStar.

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In the Gujarat Titans' middle-order, only wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler looked consistent with the bat during the 2025 season.

Whom Could The Gujarat Titans Release & Retain Before The Deadline?

The Gujarat Titans would have to strategise their plans of who to keep and who needs to be released ahead of the auction. Keeping the right player would be key for the side.

GT's core players will include captain Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Rashid Khan. Stars like Washington Sundar and Sai Kishore will also be key to the team's plans as they head into the IPL 2026 season.

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One of the players who can be released is Rahul Tewatia due to his inconsistent form in the preceding season. Karim Janat, Kusal Mendis and Gurnoor Brar are the other players who might be released as well.

All eyes will be on the IPL franchises' retentions list, which will be made available on November 15.