IPL 2026 | ‘That was a terrible performance’: Gujarat Titans coach after heavy loss to MI

Gujarat Titans suffered a crushing 99-run loss to Mumbai Indians in match 30 of the Indian Premier League 2026 at Narendra Modi Stadium. Following the defeat, batting coach Matthew Hayden did not hold back, labeling the outing as “a terrible performance.” Speaking at the post-match press conference, Hayden said the team’s batting display fell far short of expectations. He emphasised that a margin close to 100 runs is unacceptable for a side with such a strong lineup.

“As a batting coach, I expect our margins to be a lot smaller than 100 (99 runs). That is an unacceptable scorecard for our batting unit. When you look down at our batting lineup, we've got wonderful players who have to be in a better mindset and better position to take their opportunities, and that will be our expectation moving forward. We've got to be just a lot better than where we were today. That was a terrible performance,” said Hayden.

Earlier, after being asked to bat, Mumbai Indians posted a formidable 199/5, powered by Tilak Varma, who hammered an unbeaten 101 off just 45 deliveries, his first IPL century. Despite losing wickets early, MI surged in the final overs, piling on 73 runs in the last four. Gujarat’s bowlers struggled as Prasidh Krishna (1/54) and Ashok Sharma conceding heavily at economy rates exceeding 12 runs per over.

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Speaking about the bowling in the last four overs, he said, "When you look back at those last four overs, that was just a horror story. 73 off the last four is unacceptable for world-class players. And that bowling line-up has to reflect on that performance, because it's been a number of times in this tournament where key players like Prasidh have gone for big runs in their overs, and it was purely an executional thing."

Kagiso Rabada was one of the best performers for GT in the match, claiming three wickets while conceding 33 runs in his four overs. Hayden praised Rabada's performance and said, "Rabada had an outstanding day and, in fact, is having a very good tournament. I mean, his pace today is a nightmare for batting units. 150, consistently above 140, and hitting very good areas as a world-class player is exactly where we need him to be."

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In reply, Gujarat never got going as they suffered a dramatic top-order collapse, losing Sai Sudharsan for a golden duck and slipping to 45/3 inside six overs. The innings further crumbled as Ashwani Kumar (4/24), Mitchell Santner (2/16), and AM Ghazanfar (2/17) ran through the batting lineup, bundling Gujarat out for 100.

Hayden also criticised the batting middle-order of GT and stressed that top-order batters need to play more balls. "The middle order was undoubtedly exposed today. When they're coming in within six overs (powerplay), you know that you're in deep trouble. The thing about the power players is that you can't win it from there, especially in a run chase, but you can definitely lose it, and we lost it in the power play," he concluded.

After this match, Shubman Gill's Gujarat Titans have slipped to sixth position with three wins and three losses in six games.

With inputs from agencies