Two Indian batters who have done everything right at franchise level but keep finding themselves on the outside looking in when national selectors make their T20I picks — Shubman Gill and Shreyas Iyer meet as opposing captains on Tuesday at the New PCA Stadium in Mullanpur, and both have a point to prove.

Two Captains, One Conversation With the Selectors

Shubman Gill is India’s Test and ODI captain. In T20Is, he was named vice-captain but left out of India’s T20 World Cup 2026 squad to make room for Sanju Samson. India went on to win the trophy. Gill watched from the outside.

Shreyas Iyer has not played a T20I since December 2023, despite leading three different IPL franchises to finals — Delhi Capitals in 2020, Kolkata Knight Riders when they won the 2024 title, and Punjab Kings as runners-up last season. In IPL 2025, he scored 604 runs at a strike rate above 175 — among the best numbers in the competition. The selectors still did not call.

Both know that another strong IPL season is the clearest way to reopen that door.

Gill and GT: A Settled Team Built Around Two Openers

Gujarat Titans head into IPL 2026 as one of the most well-organised sides in the competition. They retained 20 players and their team identity is clear.

The core of the batting is Gill at the top alongside Sai Sudharsan, who was GT’s leading run-scorer in IPL 2025 with 759 runs. Sudharsan missed several months with a rib fracture sustained during a Vijay Hazare match in December but completed his rehabilitation at the BCCI Centre of Excellence and is expected to be fit for the opener.

New batting coach Matthew Hayden has come in to sharpen Gill’s six-hitting game and his intent at the top of the order — Gill’s career T20 strike rate is around 138, and lifting that number is the challenge he has set himself for 2026.

GT’s bowling is genuinely fearsome. Rashid Khan, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada and Prasidh Krishna form one of the most complete pace and spin attacks in the competition.

Gujarat Titans’ key players:

  • Shubman Gill ©, Sai Sudharsan — top order

  • Jos Buttler, Shahrukh Khan — middle order firepower

  • Rashid Khan, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, Prasidh Krishna — bowling attack

Shreyas and PBKS: Home Ground, Unfinished Business

Punjab Kings are playing this match at their home ground in Mullanpur, where they won the IPL 2025 final — but had just two wins from five home league matches during the regular season. Improving that home record in 2026 is one of the things Shreyas has flagged ahead of the tournament.

Their opening pair of Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya scored 1,024 runs together last season at a strike rate approaching 169 — one of the most destructive partnerships in the IPL. Both had quieter Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy campaigns, which has raised questions about current form, but form in domestic cricket and form in the IPL have rarely been the same thing.

Australian pair Marcus Stoinis and Cooper Connolly have joined the squad in Mohali. Connolly, who replaces Josh Inglis, is expected to bat at No. 3 but has been advised by Cricket Australia to avoid bowling while managing a back issue.

Punjab Kings’ key players:

  • Prabhsimran Singh, Priyansh Arya — openers

  • Shreyas Iyer ©, Marcus Stoinis, Nehal Wadhera — middle order

  • Arshdeep Singh, Marco Jansen, Yuzvendra Chahal — bowling attack

The Head-to-Head at Mullanpur

GT won at Mullanpur in 2024, but PBKS turned the same ground into their fortress last season. Tuesday’s match is Match 4 of IPL 2026 and gets underway at 7:30 PM IST. On a pitch that historically favours batters, GT’s bowling depth and PBKS’s explosive openers could make this one of the most watchable games of the opening week.