Gujarat Titans bolster coaching staff with Matthew Hayden’s appointment for IPL 2026

Former IPL champions Gujarat Titans (GT) have strengthened their coaching staff by appointing Matthew Hayden as their new batting coach for IPL 2026. Just 18 days before the start of IPL’s 19th edition, Hayden’s appointment bolsters GT’s morale, which now has a former IPL winner (with the CSK) and a two-time ICC ODI World Cup (with Australia) assisting its batters.

"Good batting applies pressure. Great batting owns the game," Hayden said in a statement after his appointment. "That's the standard we want to set at Gujarat Titans."

One of the most dominating batters of his time, Hayden will join Ashish Nehra, Vikram Solanki and Parthiv Patel in Gujarat’s backroom staff, having previously worked as a batting consultant with the Pakistan cricket team.

GT’s director of cricket, Solanki, reflected on Hayden’s appointment, saying, "His experience at the highest level, coupled with his ability to mentor emerging talent, will be instrumental in shaping our batting identity for the seasons ahead."

Meanwhile, Hayden comes with a bag full of credentials. Having won several accolades while representing Australia across formats, including two ODI World Cups and a Champions Trophy title to his name, Hayden also tasted enormous success plying his trade in the cash-rich league.

Representing CSK in his three-year stint in the IPL, Hayden made his debut in the inaugural edition, playing just four games. He, however, broke records for leading the run-scoring chart in the 2009 edition, played in South Africa, scoring 572 runs in 12 innings, with his best of 89. Although his heroics failed to lead his team to an IPL title that year, his 346-run tally in 2010, which also happened to be his last, led Chennai to its maiden IPL trophy, the first of many over the years.

Overall in the IPL, Hayden amassed 1107 runs in 32 outings, averaging 36.90 and striking at 137.52.