\u201cAt the end of the day, you have to score more runs than the other team. Whether it\u2019s by four runs or 150\u2013200 runs, the goal is to win. We are not chasing the glory of scoring 300\u2013350 in a single match.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWe want to be a team that consistently scores big runs and achieves the par target for that wicket. We want to win matches in different conditions. We don\u2019t want to be a team that performs only on good wickets,\u201d said Gill in a pre-season press conference on Thursday.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
GT will begin their IPL 2026 campaign against last year\u2019s runners-up, Punjab Kings, in Mullanpur on March 31. Head coach Ashish Nehra backed his captain\u2019s approach. \u201cLike the captain just mentioned, we want to be a team that can win in any condition, in any situation, home or away,\u201d he said.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Since their debut in 2022, GT have reached the playoffs in three out of four seasons, winning the title in their inaugural campaign and being runners-up in 2023. Nehra also defended the criticism towards GT\u2019s middle order due to over-reliance on the top three of Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler to get big runs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cFirst things first, as a coach, I don\u2019t feel the middle order was collapsing. Yes, the top three scored heavily and often batted through 17-18 overs, which is one of the main reasons the team was in such a strong position after 13-14 games.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
Since their debut in 2022, GT have reached the playoffs in three out of four seasons, winning the title in their inaugural campaign and being runners-up in 2023. Nehra also defended the criticism towards GT\u2019s middle order due to over-reliance on the top three of Gill, Sai Sudharsan, and Jos Buttler to get big runs.<\/p>\r\n\r\n
\u201cWhether it was Rahul Tewatia, Shahrukh Khan, or Sherfane Rutherford, they did their job, and that\u2019s why we were where we were. It\u2019s always easy to talk about finishers, but it\u2019s not simple when someone walks in at the 18th over needing 35 off two, especially if Jasprit Bumrah or Jofra Archer is bowling,\u201d concluded Nehra. <\/p>\r\n\r\n