Shubman Gill's Straightforward Comments After Gujarat Titans Lose in IPL 2025

Mumbai Indians played excellent nerves and temperament in the high profile match and won against Gujarat Titans by 20 runs in a high scoring IPL 2025 Eliminator. Gujarat Titans' skipper Shubman Gill was visibly upset after the match and conceded that dropping three catches actually did not work in the team's favor. In a match in which Mumbai Indians appeared extremely powerful right from the beginning, they utilized every opportunity they had and revealed why they are such a dominant side in IPL.

Mumbai Indians chose to bat first on a pitch with less grass than it is known to have and exploited their opportunity to post a huge total. Jonny Bairstow who recently signed up for Mumbai Indians following his fifties in county cricket for Yorkshire impressed with a rapid 47 off 22 balls. His big-hitting gave early momentum to Mumbai Indians. He smashed Gujarat Titans' best bowler Prasidh Krishna for 26 runs in an over that contained three sixes. His aggressive mindset left Gujarat Titans on the back foot immediately.

Dropped twice during powerplay, Rohit Sharma ensured to make the Titans work hard. He scored a good 81 off 50 balls and hit some beautiful shots around the park. As soon as spinner Sai Kishore was brought into the powerplay Rohit employed his sweep shot to perfection to hit two boundaries and a huge six. At the end of powerplay Mumbai Indians were at 79 without a single wicket their season's best powerplay score. Rohit seemed to be extremely confident and even took Rashid Khan on with an inside out drive and slog sweep that reached all the way to six.

Suryakumar Yadav also contributed his bit with 33 runs off 20 balls and provided boundaries at regular intervals for Mumbai Indians. Tilak Varma, who has not had a good season thus far, hit three sixes in short order and chipped in with some useful runs. In the final over Hardik Pandya faced Coetzee and hit two sixes to drive the score over 225. It was the third consecutive game that Gujarat Titans had been asked to chase a score of more than 225 and this made it extremely difficult for them. Shubman Gill stated after the match that it was not simple to try and control things if you are dropping three sitters in a huge game like this.

Chasing 229 was never going to be an easy job but Gujarat Titans battled well. Sai Sudharsan played a great 80 off 49 balls and gave his team a glimmer of hope. He played in fine style and found openings all around the field with utmost ease. His placement and timing were a treat to see and he nearly snatched the game from Mumbai Indians. Washington Sundar also played nicely for 48 off 24 balls and put on quick runs in the middle overs.

The match remained in balance till the last moment. With 36 runs required off the last two overs and two left-handers Rahul Tewatia and Sherfane Rutherford at hand there still remained some hope for Gujarat Titans. Mumbai Indians debutant Richard Gleeson bowled the last over and demonstrated immense courage despite being troubled with a hamstring problem. He bowled three immaculate deliveries and restricted the runs to give Mumbai Indians a win. Suryakumar Yadav was guiding the plans of the team in the last overs and took the courageous call to introduce Gleeson for those three balls understanding he was in pain. As soon as the target became beyond reach Suryakumar instructed Ashwini Kumar to finish the last three deliveries.

Gujarat Titans fielding was below par and it actually proved expensive for them towards the end. They dropped three crucial catches including two of Rohit Sharma and one of Suryakumar Yadav. Kusal Mendis, playing his debut for Gujarat Titans, also had a bad day as he also missed an easy catch behind the stumps. Gerald Coetzee also dropped a catch deep and these errors enabled Mumbai Indians to reach a massive total. Shubman Gill was truthful about this post-match and expressed that it actually does not serve any purpose when you miss those catches.

Mumbai Indians ensured that the scoreboard ticked at all points. Bairstow put the foot down with his powerful shots during the powerplay and Rohit continued to keep the Gujarat Titans bowlers under pressure. Suryakumar and Tilak Varma contributed rapid runs in the middle overs and Hardik Pandya provided the finishing touch to drive the total over 225. They were confident in their batting and seemed to be in charge right from the beginning.

It was another painful evening for Gujarat Titans as they failed to dominate the game with the ball in hand and also failed to capitalize on the chances in the field. Their bowling attack was not able to contain the Mumbai Indians batsmen and their fielders made life even more difficult by dropping those catches. Despite Sai Sudharsan's lovely innings it proved to be insufficient in the end since Mumbai Indians maintained their cool and ensured that they won the crucial moments of the game.

With this victory Mumbai Indians proceeded to Qualifier 2 where they will play Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad on Sunday. Their dominating performance in this pressure game proved why they have won the IPL five times in the past and why they are always a difficult team to beat in crucial matches. For Gujarat Titans it was the end of their journey in the IPL 2025 as they failed in this Eliminator though there were some good individual performances.

Shubman Gill's post-match statement reflected his frustration, as well as his integrity. He understood that losing those catches made a huge difference and in a match where runs are a premium always going to prove difficult to chase 229 if you allow the other team to score with freedom. Mumbai Indians were excellent in skill and nerve of steel on the big stage and their experience served them in dealing better with pressure. The Eliminator was a thrill and big hits galore and ultimately it was Mumbai Indians who played nerve of steel and moved one step closer to IPL 2025.