GT vs RR, IPL 2026 Qualifier 2: Gujarat Titans’ pace spearhead Kagiso Rabada has climbed to the top of the wicket-taking list in IPL 2026 with two crucial wickets in the Eliminator clash against the Rajasthan Royals on May 30, Friday in Mullanpur.

In what was a winning effort against the Titans, the South African pacer has snatched the purple cap from Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Bhuvneshwar Kumar with 28 wickets.

GT vs RR, IPL 2026 Qualifier 2: Kagiso Rabada two away from equalling his IPL 2020 wickets tally

Yashasvi Jaiswal and Dhruv Jurel perished cheaply inside the powerplay with Rabada dismissing the latter for only 7. Due to two early wickets, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi had to curb his aggressive instincts and played accordingly. Ravindra Jadeja, who was sent in No.4, played some outstanding shots, ensuring that he cashed in the powerplay. Sooryavanshi eventually notched up his half-century off 31 deliveries even as Jadeja had walked off due to an elbow injury that felt uncomfortable. Nevertheless, the Royals kept losing wickets before Jadeja returned to bat again, thereby notching another useful partnership. After Sooryavanshi perished for 96 as similarly as he did against the SunRisers Hyderabad, Donovan Ferreira plundered four sixes in the final over against Rashid Khan to propel the Royals to a grand finish, thereby setting up 215 for the Titans.

In a steep chase of 215, B Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill played impeccably to put the Titans in the driver's seat. The 150-run stand between the two came only in the 12th over of the innings until B Sai Sudharsan bizarrely got out hit wicket again for a well-made 58, thereby ending the 167-run partnership. Nevertheless, Gill brought up a 47-ball hundred, thereby becoming the first captain to clatter a hundred in the IPL playoffs. Although Gill perished for 104, the likes of Jos Buttler, Rahul Tewatia and Washington Sundar finished the formality with more than an over to spare. The dropped catch by Ferreira in the fourth over was potentially game-changing as the match could've swung their way if that chance had been snared.

Rabada had taken 30 wickets in IPL 2020 to win the purple cap and could be on the road to achieve it again.