NEW DELHI: Rajasthan Royals, under new captain Riyan Parag, began their IPL 2026 campaign in emphatic fashion, thrashing Chennai Super Kings by eight wickets in their opener. They will now look to build on that momentum and extend their winning run.

Gujarat Titans, meanwhile, will be eager to get their campaign back on track after suffering a defeat to Punjab Kings in their opening game.

Ahead of the high-voltage clash between GT and RR, the contest between express pacer Jofra Archer and Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill promises to be a key subplot.

Archer has enjoyed the upper hand in this battle so far in T20s, dismissing Gill three times in 19 deliveries while conceding just 16 runs.

The England pacer was also in fine form in the previous game against CSK, returning impressive figures of 2/19 in four overs, including the crucial wicket of skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Gill, on the other hand, looked in good touch despite GT’s loss in their opener, scoring 39 off 27 balls with six boundaries.

Another intriguing face-off will be between Kagiso Rabada and the in-form Vaibhav Sooryavanshi.

Sooryavanshi, known for his aggressive strokeplay, was in devastating form against CSK, smashing a 15-ball half-century to power Rajasthan Royals to a dominant win.

Rabada will have the task of containing the young batter and breaking his rhythm early.

Gill is also closing in on a significant milestone in the IPL. The GT skipper is just 95 runs away from reaching 4,000 runs in the tournament.

So far, he has scored 3,905 runs in 119 matches (116 innings) at an average of 39.44 and a strike rate of 138.77, including four centuries and 26 half-centuries. His highest score remains 129.

GT vs RR: Head-to-head

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Gujarat Titans have the upper hand and have clearly dominated this rivalry, winning six of the eight encounters, while Rajasthan Royals have managed just two victories.

The two sides notably met in the IPL 2022 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, where Gujarat Titans clinched the title with a convincing seven-wicket win.

However, in their most recent meeting, Rajasthan Royals turned the tables in style, with Vaibhav Sooryavanshi smashing a sensational 101 off just 38 balls to power his side to a remarkable 210-run chase in under 16 overs at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

GT vs RR: Ahmedabad weather report

The weather in Ahmedabad on Saturday is expected to be hot and humid with partly cloudy skies. There is only a minimal chance of rain during the match, making interruptions unlikely. As it is an evening game, a light breeze could set in, which might offer some assistance to the fast bowlers. Temperatures are likely to hover between 26°C and 32°C during match hours. Overall, conditions look favourable for a full, uninterrupted contest between Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals.

GT vs RR: Pitch report

The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad is expected to favour the batters, setting the stage for a potential run-fest on Saturday evening. A high-scoring contest is on the cards in the clash between Rajasthan Royals and Gujarat Titans, with the pitch likely to offer good bounce. The true surface should allow stroke-makers to play their shots freely, ensuring an enjoyable outing for the batters.

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GT vs RR: Predicted XIIs

Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada/Jason Holder, Ashok Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna

Rajasthan Royals: Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Riyan Parag (c), Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Ravi Bishnoi, Sandeep Sharma, Nandre Burger, Brijesh Sharma

GT vs RR: SQUADS

Gujarat Titans Squad: Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Ashok Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Jason Holder, Jayant Yadav, Manav Suthar, Kumar Kushagra, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Ishant Sharma, Luke Wood, Tom Banton, Kulwant Khejroliya, Anuj Rawat, Arshad Khan, Gurnoor Brar, Nishant Sindhu

Rajasthan Royals Squad: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, Dhruv Jurel(w), Riyan Parag(c), Shimron Hetmyer, Ravindra Jadeja, Jofra Archer, Nandre Burger, Sandeep Sharma, Ravi Bishnoi, Brijesh Sharma, Donovan Ferreira, Lhuan-dre Pretorius, Ravi Singh, Sushant Mishra, Tushar Deshpande, Adam Milne, Dasun Shanaka, Kuldeep Sen, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Shubham Dubey, Kwena Maphaka, Vignesh Puthur, Aman Rao Perala

Thomas Tuchel insisted England’s dispiriting 1-0 loss to Japan in a friendly will have no bearing on the team’s chances at the upcoming World Cup.

England has lost some of the momentum built up under Tuchel by drawing with Uruguay at Wembley Stadium on Friday and then succumbing to Kaoru Mitoma’s first-half goal for Japan at the same venue four days later.

Tuchel has fielded experimental lineups for both games, with key regulars like captain Harry Kane, Declan Rice and Bukayo Saka missing because of minor injuries.

The German coach also said many of his players are “heavily invested” in their club campaigns at this stage of the season.

For that reason, Tuchel felt sure “this camp will not define us.” 
“It’s just a reality if teams like Uruguay or Japan come well-drilled, with their top lineup, it’s a difficult task,” Tuchel said.

“It was not necessary to lose the match. Unfortunately, we lost it, which is disappointing, and I hate losing, like no one else, and it will take a while to digest. But it will not affect us massively for when we arrive in the U.S.” 
Cole Palmer and Phil Foden are star players in the Premier League but battling to simply make England’s squad for the World Cup, and were given another chance to impress Tuchel after being handed starts against Japan.

They failed to take it, with England especially poor in the first half when the team failed to manage a shot on target for the first time in a friendly match since 2017, according to statistics company Opta.

With Morgan Rogers and Jude Bellingham other options as attacking midfielders, Palmer and Foden face anxious waits to see if they make the plane for the tournament.

“I’m not the biggest fan of talking about individuals, but, of course if we put offensive players on the pitch, we demand offensive actions, we demand creativity, we demand shots, we demand assists, and we clearly didn’t have enough. We could not create,” said Tuchel, who deployed Foden as a so-called “false nine” in Kane’s absence.

“We made it difficult for us to find them in the half-spaces. We struggled to open up these spaces. We played against the deep 5-4-1. We didn’t use the width of the field enough to make the difference, and our offensive players struggled to make the difference.” 
Tuchel accepted that the absence of Kane hurt his team.

“No team in the world has the same threat (without Kane),” he said. “It’s just normal. On top of it, Harry dropped out so we lost not only him as a player, but we lost him as a personality. It’s always a bit disruptive if the captain leaves the last training after 15 minutes and is out of the squad.

“We can win games without Harry,” Tuchel added. “We will win without Harry. We have won without Harry, but it’s easier to win matches with Harry, of course.” 
In other friendlies, Euro 2024 champion Spain was held 0-0 by Egypt, and the Netherlands – another title hopeful this summer – drew 1-1 at home to Ecuador after playing most of the game with 10 men after Denzel Dumfries’ 12th-minute red card.

The Sky Bet Grand National offer is gives new customers £30 in Grand National free bets for placing any bet on the three-day racing event at Aintree.

The Sky Bet Grand National betting sign offer allows users to place any bet on the Grand National from as low as 5p to unlocks £30 in free bets to use over the course of the racing at Aintree.

We’ve detailed all you need to know Sky Bet Grand National betting offer, how it compares to Grand National promos on other betting sites and Sky Bet betting offers for existing customers during the event.

Sky Bet Grand National offer: Get £30 free bets from any bet

The Sky Bet Grand National offer gives new customers the chance to claim £30 in free bets after placing a bet on any race on Grand National day, starting as little as 5p.

To qualify for the betting sign up offer, new users must sign up via one of the links in the article then make a deposit using an eligible payment method before placing a bet as little as £0.05 on any Grand National market with odds of evens or greater.

This Sky Bet Grand National offer can only be claimed once per customer. Once the qualifying bet has been settled, bettors will receive £30 in Grand National free bets paid out in 3 x £10 installments.

Claim the SkyBet Grand National offer by following these simple steps.

Users must place qualifying bet within 30 days of opening an account. Deposits using Neteller or Skrill will not qualify. Free bets are non-withdrawable and free bet stakes are not included in any returns, and they expire seven days after crediting.

Free bets can be redeemed against any single or each-way market and cannot be used in conjunction with any other offer. Free bets cannot be used on virtuals.

How does the Sky Bet betting sign up offer compare with rival Grand National offers?

There are plenty of Grand National free bets available in the lead up to and during the festival, and the comparison table below shows how the SkyBet Grand National free bet promo stacks up against competing offers from other horse racing betting sites.

Sky Bet Grand National offers

SkyBet will have a range of offers available during the Grand National. Punters can expect to find the following promos running:

Acca Freeze: Freeze a leg of your acca to keep the result, while the rest of your bet plays out.

Extra place races: Sky Bet will offer extra places on selected races at Aintree, including the Grand National, enhancing the chances of a return on each-way bets.

Bet and get: Punters can unlock between £2 and £20 in free bets by wagering a specific amount on a certain event or bet type.

Odds boosts: Sky Bet boosts the price on a range of Grand National bets.

Non-runner no bet (NRNB): Back a horse at Aintree in any race and if it doesn’t run, get your money back in full.

Grand National specials: Punters can find a range of Sky Bet Grand National specials available for the 2026 Festival.

Live streaming: The Grand National can be watched via live stream, so long as a bet has been placed on that race.

Responsible gambling

Bettors should always gamble responsibly online. Always remain within a budget and never exceed it. Never chase your losses.

Anyone can lose a bet even if they know a lot about horse racing. It is easy to get carried away with the Grand National, so remain in control of your time and betting when claiming Sky Bet free bets or any other Grand National offers.

Bettors can use responsible gambling tools provided by gambling sites such as deposit limits, loss limits and self-exclusion among others.

These should be available on all regulated casino sites, slot sites and poker sites too.

Should you wish to seek help for gambling-related issues, there are several charities, organisations and healthcare providers who offer support and information:

We may earn commission from some of the links in this article, but we never allow this to influence our content. This revenue helps to fund journalism across The Independent.

Hardik Pandya (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)

NEW DELHI: Delhi Capitals captain Axar Patel won the toss and opted to field against five-time champions Mumbai Indians at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Saturday.“I choose to bowl first. First match at home, I want to see how the wicket is behaving. It looks a bit dry, a bit hard. We chased well in the last match. To chase down the target from 26/ 4 in the powerplay, it gives a lot of confidence to the group. Even the top-order know that there are batters in the lower order who can step up if they fail. Playing a home game is always beneficial. Our DC supporters will cheer for us. Same team.,” Axar said at the toss.Mumbai Indians suffered a major blow as their captain Hardik Pandya missed the clash against Delhi Capitals.In Pandya’s absence, Suryakumar Yadav led the side.

DC vs MI: Why isn’t Hardik Pandya playing today?