GT vs KKR Match 25 — Buttler's Ahmedabad Home Debut
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Match 25 of IPL 2026 lands at the world's largest cricket stadium tonight — Gujarat Titans host Kolkata Knight Riders at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, at 7:30 PM IST. Every preview on every cricket site will talk about Shubman Gill and Sunil Narine. Almost none will lead with the actual storyline: this is Jos Buttler's first home game for Gujarat Titans at Ahmedabad since his ₹15.75 Cr move from Rajasthan Royals at the IPL 2026 auction.
If you're building a Dream11 team, watching for narrative hooks, or just trying to understand why this fixture matters more than the standings suggest, here's the full preview.
The storyline nobody else is writing
Buttler spent nine IPL seasons with Rajasthan Royals. He captained them. He won MVPs with them. His six-hitting at Jaipur became a franchise identity. And then at the IPL 2026 auction, he moved to Gujarat Titans — the first RR jersey he's ever not worn in India.
Tonight is the first time he walks out at Narendra Modi Stadium with a Gujarat Titans cap on his head for a home fixture. That's not a generic "big player plays big match" line. It's a specific career-arc moment — the kind of narrative that compounds every time GT plays at home this season.
For the auction-era GT lineup and the post-auction trades that shaped this squad, see our GT squad analysis for IPL 2026.
KKR without Russell and Starc
On the other side, KKR come into this game as a team that looks very different from the 2024 champions. Two critical absences:
- Andre Russell has retired from IPL cricket — per memory of the post-auction shuffle, one of the era-defining figures of KKR is gone.
- Mitchell Starc signed with PBKS for ₹11.75 Cr at the IPL 2026 auction, stripping KKR of their death-overs pace weapon.
Who fills those gaps? Sunil Narine still opens and bowls his four overs. Varun Chakravarthy anchors the spin attack. Harshit Rana — the Indian pacer who broke out in 2024 — carries more load. Shreyas Iyer is gone to PBKS (more on that below), so Rinku Singh and Venkatesh Iyer share the middle-order leadership.
This KKR still has firepower, but their margin for error is thinner than the trophy-winning version.
Narendra Modi Stadium — pitch and conditions
The Motera pitch has behaved as a balanced surface across IPL 2026 — enough for the bowlers in the Powerplay with some swing, flattening out for batters in the middle, and favouring chasers once the dew rolls in after 8 PM.
- First-innings average (night games): 175-190
- Toss call: Winning captains have chosen to chase
- Dew window: 9:30 PM IST onwards — reverse-swing vanishes, spinners grip less
- Boundary lengths: Long square, shorter straight
Anyone picking Dream11 bowlers tonight should favour Powerplay specialists and spinners who operate before dew kicks in.
Shubman Gill at home — the data
Gill has historically been more productive at Ahmedabad than on the road. The crowd lifts him, the square boundaries reward his cover drive, and the short straight boundary means mistimed lofts still clear the rope. He'll open and, for GT to win, almost certainly needs to hit 40+ off the Powerplay.
His partner at the top is Sai Sudharsan, one of GT's quieter IPL 2026 success stories.
Predicted playing XIs
Gujarat Titans (expected)
Jos Buttler (wk), Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Siraj, Kagiso Rabada, Gerald Coetzee, Prasidh Krishna
Kolkata Knight Riders (expected)
Sunil Narine, Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Venkatesh Iyer, Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh, Varun Chakravarthy, Harshit Rana, Vaibhav Arora, Moeen Ali, Anukul Roy
Final XIs confirm at toss. Follow the IPL 2026 points table to track how this result reshapes the table.
Dream11 angle — quick reads
- Captain: Shubman Gill at home is the safe pick. Buttler is the differential.
- Must-pick: Prasidh Krishna — he's been the breakout bowler of IPL 2026 (currently leading the Purple Cap race).
- Powerplay specialist: Sunil Narine (bat + ball dual role)
- Differential: Sai Sudharsan at home conditions
- Avoid: Any KKR middle-order pick who relies on Russell being there to finish
For the full Dream11 build with all captain/VC permutations, see Match 25 GT vs KKR Dream11 prediction.
FAQ
Q: What time does GT vs KKR Match 25 start? A: Toss is at 7:00 PM IST and first ball is at 7:30 PM IST on Friday, 17 April 2026 at Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad.
Q: Is Jos Buttler playing for GT in IPL 2026? A: Yes. Buttler moved from Rajasthan Royals to Gujarat Titans at the IPL 2026 auction for ₹15.75 Cr. Match 25 is his first home game for GT at Narendra Modi Stadium this season.
Q: Why isn't Mitchell Starc playing for KKR? A: Starc signed with Punjab Kings at the IPL 2026 auction. KKR did not retain him ahead of the auction, and Starc's bid went to PBKS for ₹11.75 Cr.
Q: Is Andre Russell playing in IPL 2026? A: No. Andre Russell has retired from IPL cricket. KKR's middle-order death-hitting role is now shared by Rinku Singh and Ramandeep Singh.
Q: Who is the GT captain in IPL 2026? A: Shubman Gill captains Gujarat Titans. He took over the role and has continued in IPL 2026.
Q: What does the toss favour at Narendra Modi Stadium? A: In night matches with expected dew, chasing is favoured. The captain winning the toss has usually chosen to bowl first.
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Vikram Singh
Expert in: Ipl 2026Vikram Singh has been playing Dream11 fantasy cricket for 6 years and has won multiple grand league contests across IPL and international tournaments. He covers IPL match-by-match fantasy analysis for CricJosh, focusing on pitch conditions, head-to-head records, and differential picks that separate winning from losing lineups.
Why trust this review: Vikram's recommendations are based on 6 years of real money fantasy cricket across hundreds of contests. He explains the reasoning behind every pick so you can make the final call yourself.
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