Former India offspinner Ravichandran Ashwin has come out with praise for Gujarat Titans pacer Kagiso Rabada.
Rabada was instrumental in setting up GT’s win over Punjab Kings on May 3, and extended their winning streak to 3 matches.
Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, and Jason Holder set up their third win in a row for GT
In Ahmedabad on Sunday, Siraj set the ball rolling after dismissing Priyansh Arya off the second ball of the match. The pacer added another wicket off the next ball by dismissing Cooper Connolly for a golden duck.
Kagiso Rabada added to Punjab’s woes by dismissing Prabhsimran Singh in the sixth over. Rabada turned the last over of the powerplay into a wicket-maiden.
Jason Holder then struck twice in quick succession by dismissing Nehal Wadhera for a duck first and then getting rid of Shreyas Iyer. All of this left Punjab tottering at 47/5 before Nehal Wadhera and Marcus Stoinis staged a recovery.
Half-centurion Wadhera fell to Rabada later in the innings, with the Protea finishing with figures of 2/22 in his four overs.
A cameo from Marco Jansen took Punjab to 163 and gave the bowlers something to bowl at.
Sai Sudharsan made a fifty, and GT looked set to chase the total down, but Arshdeep Singh led the Punjab bowlers in a spirited fightback that caused a middle-overs collapse.
Ultimately, Washington Sundar held through with an unbeaten 40 that gave GT the win in the last over.
Also Read: Shubman Gill trolls Punjab Kings after GT’s win, takes dig at Shreyas Iyer
Ashwin reserves high praise for Kagiso Rabada
Ravichandran Ashwin took to his YouTube channel and effused high praise on Kagiso Rabada and his bowling effort on the night.
“It feels like he has been spiritually possessed. He is not just bowling fast but letting thunderbolts go. Prabhsimran Singh literally went to a side facing him with his back leg frozen. Rabada set the tempo for GT. The way he bowled to Prabhsimran almost makes the batter want to go away,” he said.
Aside from Rabada, Ashwin also put out high praise for GT’s entire bowling attack and Shubman Gill’s captaincy.
“The ball literally goes into his hands for catches. Shreyas Iyer has been on song in this IPL. Yet, Holder troubled him and dismissed him,” Ashwin said of Jason Holder, who had been adjudged Player of the Match.
Ashwin went on to talk about how GT’s in-form and quality bowling line-up has made Shubman Gill’s job as captain easier.
“You are only as good as your bowlers and overall team. When you have Siraj, Rabada, Holder, and Rashid Khan, you’ll look good. The bowlers can make a captain look intelligent or foolish. The bowlers in this attack will always bowl to their fields. That itself is half the job done for a captain,” said Ashwin.
“He has a high-quality attack that executes well, which works to his advantage. But he is able to use Rashid Khan well despite him still not being at his best and bowling too full. Gill still uses him in the end overs and gets away with it,” he concluded.
Kagiso Rabada in IPL 2026
Ashwin’s high praise for Kagiso Rabada is not for nothing. Rabada is currently GT’s highest wicket-taker in IPL 2026 and is third on the Purple Cap list.
After a rough start to the season, he picked up the pace in the last few matches. Kagiso Rabada now has 16 wickets from 10 matches in this year’s IPL. He has been going at an average of 22.5 and an economy of 9.23 with best figures of 3/25.
In fact, it’s the first time since 2023 that he has touched the 15-wicket mark in an IPL season.
Gujarat Titans’ next match
Fifth-placed GT will take on fourth-placed Rajasthan Royals in their next match. Kagiso Rabada will once again be expected to play a central role.
Both teams have 6 wins from 10 matches, but RR have a vastly superior net run rate. The two teams have met once before this season. On that occasion, RR won a last-over thriller by 6 runs. Kagiso Rabada had surprisingly contributed with the bat as well in that match.
