New Delhi, Feb 19 (IANS) Gujarat Titans batter B Sai Sudharsan, who faced a lengthy spell on the sidelines after sustaining a right rib fracture during Tamil Nadu’s Vijay Hazare Trophy match against Madhya Pradesh in Ahmedabad last December, has started his preparations for the IPL 2026 alongside skipper Shubman Gill.
GT have begun their IPL 2026 preparations in full swing with a pre-season camp led by head coach Ashish Nehra and assistant coach Parthiv Patel at Miraj International Cricket Stadium in Nathdwara.
Sudharsan, who has played six Tests and three ODIs for India, has fractured the ‘anterior cortex of the seventh right rib’ while diving to complete a run in the match. The southpaw then checked in at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, where he underwent rehab.
The left-hander has formed a successful opening partnership for Gujarat Titans alongside captain Gill, making his availability crucial to the franchise’s plans, especially considering he was the leading run-getter in IPL 2025.
Titans had retained as many as 20 players, including Gill and Sudharsan, who played pivotal roles in guiding the team to the IPL Playoffs last season. Apart from Gill and Sudharsan, Mohammed Siraj, Washington Sundar, Prasidh Krishna, Sai Kishore, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Ishant Sharma, Jayant Yadav, Manav Suthar, Kumar Kushagra, Anuj Rawat, Gurnoor Brar, Arshad Khan and Nishant Sindhu will once again don the Titans’ jersey.
Among our overseas contingent, England wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler, Afghanistan spin maestro Rashid Khan, South Africa’s premier pacer Kagiso Rabada and New Zealand all-rounder Glenn Phillips have all been retained for the IPL 2026 season.
The 2022 champions strengthened their squad with five new additions as they roped in West Indies’ all-rounder Jason Holder, England’s wicketkeeper-batter Tom Banton, talented Indian fast bowler Ashok Sharma, England left-arm pacer Luke Wood and uncapped Indian speedster Prithvi Raj during the mini auction held last December.
–IANS
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