Gujarat Titans won their first match of the IPL season after David Miller turned down the equalising run
Gujarat Titans withstood David Miller’s late onslaught to beat Delhi Capitals in a final-ball thriller on Wednesday to get their 2026 Indian Premier League campaign off the mark with a nail-bitting one-run win.
Needing two runs off Prasidh Krishna’s final ball, Miller missed the short slower delivery and wicketkeeper Jos Buttler threw down the stumps at the striker’s end to run out Kuldeep Yadav as the batters attempted to scramble the tying single.
The South African left-hander had earlier retired hurt with a bruised finger but defied the pain after resuming his innings in the 17th over to drag Delhi to the brink of victory with a thunderous late assault that left them needing just two to win with two balls remaining.
Miller (41no off 20 balls, with three sixes) refused a single on the penultimate delivery that would have levelled the scores, sending back Kuldeep while confident he could finish the job off the last ball.
But he then failed to lay a bat on Krishna’s final short ball, and though the pair set off desperately for the equalising run, wicketkeeper Buttler nailed his direct hit with a diving Kuldeep well short of the crease.
Even then, the drama wasn’t finished as the delivery was reviewed to see if it had soared over Miller’s shoulder.
To Gujarat’s delight and Miller’s agony, it was not ruled a wide and Delhi, who had begun their chase with an inspiring 92 from captain KL Rahul, fell agonisingly short on 8-209.
After two defeats to start the tournament, half-centuries from captain Shubman Gill (70 off 45 balls), Jos Buttler (52 off 27) and Washington Sundar (55 off 32) fired the Titans to 4-210 off their 20 overs after being sent in at Delhi’s Arun Jaitley Stadium.
Gujarat looked in control when Sri Lanka’s Pathum Nissanka (41 off 24) combined with Rahul for a 76-run opening stand before Rashid Khan (3-17) struck three times in his four overs to leave the equation a testing 45 from 18 balls after Miller returned to the crease.
Kagiso Rabada conceded nine runs in the 18th over but Miller smacked Mohammed Siraj for 23 runs in the penultimate over, reducing the target to 13 of Krishna’s last over.
Vipraj Nigam hit Krishna’s first delivery over mid-off for a boundary before he got caught off the next ball, but Miller’s towering six off the fourth ball left his side needing two from two.
Gill said he thought his side were a chance to win when Miller didn’t take the single on the second last ball.
“We decided if we bowl a good slower one; (we thought) it will be difficult to hit for a boundary,” the Gujarat skipper said during the post-match presentation.
On Thursday, Cameron Green is expected to resume bowling duties for Kolkata Knight Riders as they search for their first win against the Mitch Marsh-powered Lucknow Super Giants.
IPL 2026 standings
Australians in IPL 2026
Chennai Super Kings: Matt Short ($255k), Spencer Johnson ($255k, replaces Nathan Ellis ($340k))
Delhi Capitals: Mitchell Starc ($2m)
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Josh Hazlewood ($2.13m), Tim David ($510k)
Punjab Kings: Marcus Stoinis ($1.9m), Ben Dwarshuis ($745k), Mitchell Owen ($510k), Cooper Connolly ($510k), Xavier Bartlett ($136k)
Kolkata Knight Riders: Cameron Green ($3.5m)
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Pat Cummins ($3.5m), Travis Head ($2.38m), Jack Edwards ($510k, withdrawn)
Lucknow Super Giants: Josh Inglis ($1.49m), Mitchell Marsh ($578k)
