It is crunch time in the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) and one of the biggest success stories this season has been that of Gujarat Titans. The 2022 champions have had a prolific run in the tournament and while the fast bowling has been a revelation, it is really their batting unit which has been a cut above the rest in the competition. Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler and Shubman Gill have been brilliantly consistent – all scoring in excess of 450 runs at a scoring rate of 150+ in the tournament.
Scoring Big Runs at the Rate of Knots
Titans have scored in excess of 180 in 8 of their 10 innings this season. They have crossed 200 five times – the most for any team in the tournament. Titans’ top-order has been in pulsating form in the competition and fired on all cylinders. GT has the highest combined batting average (43.1) this season with a yawning gap between them and number two on this count – Mumbai Indians – who have a corresponding average of 35.7. Not only have the Titans’ batters scored big runs consistently but done so at a rapid rate. Their combined strike rate of 170.5 is again the highest in the edition. Punjab Kings with a combined rate of 163.3 are at number two.
Titans have adopted a two-pronged approach with the bat this season – maximize the boundaries and minimize the dot balls. They have the best balls per boundary (four or six) ratio of 4.4 and their dot ball percentage at 27.3% is also the lowest this season.
A Top-Notch Performance by GT’s Top 3
GT’s top 3 have been in splendid form and scored three-fourths of the team’s runs this season. They have complimented each other and shared the spoils with their individual contribution ranging from 24.5% to 26.6%. Sai Sudharsan is at the top of the run-charts with 504 runs in 10 innings. Jos Buttler is at number 3 on the runs-tally list this season with 470 runs and is followed by Shubman Gill who has an aggregate of 465. It is quite startling that three of the four highest run-getters this season belong to the Titans. Only Suryakumar Yadav, with 475 runs, is the non-Titans batter in the top 4 but he has played an extra match in the tournament.
The GT top 3 have 15 fifties between them (5 each) with strike rates ranging between 154 and 162. Lucknow Super Giants follow with a total of 12 half-centuries. The combined batting average of the Titans’ top 3 is 57.6. LSG is again at number two with an average of 39.2. Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran have had a tremendous season for the Super Giants. The fact that Sudharsan, Buttler and Gill have outnumbered them and by some margin showcases the brilliance of the GT top-order with the bat in the competition.
Here is another staggering statistic – the combined batting average of GT’s top 3 is not only the highest for this season but it is the highest ever for any IPL team in any edition of the tournament! Only one other team had a top 3 batting average of 50+ (RCB’s Top 3 averaged 51.3 in 2016). And just for the record, the top 3 of this RCB team included Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers!
Stepping it up in the middle overs
While the GT top 3 have dominated the run-scoring in the powerplay with a stunning average of 91.8 this season, they have really up the ante in the middle overs. GT has a combined batting strike rate of 165.2 between overs 7-15 in the tournament, which is not only the best amongst all teams for this season but the highest ever in this phase of play for any IPL team in any edition!
Next on the list is Kolkata Knight Riders, who had a strike rate of 163 in the middle overs during their victorious campaign last season
Amazing Consistency
GT’s top 3 have been phenomenally consistent in the tournament with one of Sudharsan, Buttler or Gill scoring a fifty in every match for the Titans. The combined Failure Rate of the GT top 3 in IPL 2025 is just 20% (6 combined failures in 30 innings) which showcases how consistent they have been at the top of the order for the Titans.
Mastering both Pace & Spin
The trio of Sudharsan, Gill and Buttler have dominated both pace and spin this season. While Sudharsan has a scoring rate of 152.3 vs pace and 157.7 vs spin, Gill has scored at a rate of 160 vs pace and 165 vs spin. Buttler has taken the fast bowlers to the cleaners scoring at 173.3 per 100 deliveries against them while his strike rate against the slower bowlers is 163.3.
Incidentally, all three of them are brilliant back-foot batters and have maximized the ‘Pull Shot’ this season. Gill has scored 73 runs off just 30 deliveries playing the Pull while Sudharsan has smashed 88 runs in just 43 deliveries with two dismissals when playing the shot. Buttler has blasted 82 runs off just 32 deliveries at a rate of 256.3 with two dismissals while playing the Pull this season.
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