Into Gujarat Titans' IPL 2026 auction plans: How Shubman Gill's team plan to make a champion unit
Gujarat Titans aim for strategic mini-auction, focusing on one impactful buy and smart value additions to enhance their strong core.
Gujarat Titans have the spine most teams spend an entire auction trying to build, the top-order certainty, multiple high-quality quicks, and elite spin. What GT need now is far more specific: a couple of role-perfect fixes that turn a strong XI into a ruthless, match-winning machine.
That clarity is shaped by numbers. GT head into the mini-auction with INR 12.90 cr in the purse and five slots to fill, with the flexibility of four overseas slots available. A mid-sized wallet and multiple vacancies typically forces into compromise. For GT, it should enforce discipline: one impact buy, then smart value to complete the squad without hollowing out the bench.
Why GT’s auction should be role-first
On paper, the retained core covers most bases. Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan offer stability at the top, Jos Buttler gives explosiveness, and the bowling group carries a genuine wicket-taking threat through phases with Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, and Prasidh Krishna in pace and Rashid Khan plus Sai Kishore in spin. That is a title-contending foundation.
But the mini-auction is where pretty good turns into dominating. GT’s biggest vulnerability is not talent, it’s distribution: the finishing phase can become overly dependent on a couple of names and match situations. With Sherfane Rutherford traded out, the late-overs power and left-right balance are areas that demand reinforcement. The goal is simple: ensure that when Gill-Buttler set a platform, GT consistently convert it into a decisive total, and when defending, they have enough end overs variety to keep even set batters guessing.
Target 1: David Miller
If GT want a clean, role-defined solution to end-overs question, David Miller is the most direct fit on the shortlist. Miller’s value isn’t just the boundary-hitting; it is the predictability of his job description. He doesn’t force a reshuffle at the top, and he doesn’t need a team to build an identity around him.
That matters for GT because the rest of their batting structure is already strong enough to create winning totals; what they need is a finisher who can make those totals feel out of reach. In a mini-auction, role clarity is currency. Miller offers it in a way that aligns with GT’s purse reality: spend big once, and don’t create new problems elsewhere.
Target 2: Mustafizur Rahman
GT’s bowling is stacked, but T20s are often decided in a narrow corridor: overs 16-20. An additional overseas quick is not a luxury when you have four overseas slots open; it is insurance and match-up flexibility.
That is where Mustafizur Rahman stands out. The appeal is the variety: cutters, angles, and pace manipulation that make clean hitting harder even on friendly batting surfaces. For a side that already has high-end speed and strike options, Mustafizur offers a different kind of threat, one that doesn’t rely on brute pace alone. He also gives GT the freedom to tailor combinations depending on venue and opposition, rather than being locked into one pace script.
Target 3: Abhinav Manohar
The hidden battle in mini-auctions is not the headline buy; it’s what happens after it. With INR 12.90 crore for five slots, GT cannot afford to win one bidding war and then fill the rest of the squad with desperation picks. That’s why one value Indian batter who can genuinely step into the XI matters.
Abhinav Manohar fits that requirement as a low-cost depth option from the short list. He allows GT to protect the purse while adding a domestic batting cover who can be deployed when the season inevitably demands rotation, match-ups, or injury replacements. It’s the kind of signing that doesn’t trend on auction night, but often saves teams in May.
The best way GT should play the room
GT’s winning strategy would be restraint with intent: commit to one impact purchase, then ensure the remaining slots are filled with value, starting with Manohar as a practical Indian depth player. The franchise already has the luxury of a strong retained core. The mini-auction is about eliminating the few situations where that core can still be squeezed.
