IPL Pulse: Botching up and gearing down

Good morning,

Whoever said IPL 2026 has been predictable, thank you. Because the universe heard you. We've DMed you other stuff that you can call "predictable" but until then, here's Cricbuzz Pulse, your 2-minute morning scan of the IPL universe

Last night in five lines

1. GT edged DC by 1 run in a 419-run match, finally getting their campaign going after two narrow losses.

2. Rashid Khan's 3 for 17 was the difference in DC's botched chase of 211-run target.

3. Shubman Gill (70) and Washington Sundar (55) stitched a 104-run stand to power GT past 200, with Jos Buttler's 52 setting the early tempo.

4. GT had 220 in sight but a brief slowdown at the death, led by Lungi Ngidi's control, kept them to 210.

5. KL Rahul (92) and Pathum Nissanka (41) led DC's chase which went down to the last ball.

Oh, that happened

DC needed 2 off 2, with the franchise on the brink of their highest ever run-chase. Hemang Badani was smiling, the dugout was on its feet. And more importantly, David Miller was in full flow in the middle, having launched Prasidh Krishna into the stands earlier in this final over. But DC didn't get over the line. On the penultimate ball, Miller turned down a single which would have at least assured a Super Over (yes, this happened) and then failed to connect with a slower bouncer off the final ball. He ran for the bye but Jos Buttler, who already had a glove off, nailed the direct hit and Kuldeep was short!

Pulse awards

The i-don't-understand-this-timeline award goes to Washington Sundar for scoring his maiden IPL fifty nine years after debut and still being 26.

The full-circle award goes to Buttler for having his stumps rearranged by Kuldeep and then returning the favour to seal the game with Kuldeep's run-out.

The gearing-down-not-up award goes to Buttler again for switching footwear to score runs (more on this in the "chatter") and then waiting on the last ball with gloves off.

The evil-warded-off award goes to Sai Sudharsan's huge locket for ensuring that he makes up for lack of runs (for once) with a run out of Stubbs.

The dare-to-be-different award goes to the Arun Jaitley Stadium for refusing to look like every other stadium in India.

The far-from-feeling-homesick award goes to Nissanka for finally getting a "home" surface that lets him play his shots.

Talking point

Are DC playing the right combination at home? They have three quality spinners in Axar, Kuldeep and Vipraj, but their own den has turned on them. Since 2024, the Arun Jaitley Stadium has returned the second-worst economy rate for spin among regular IPL venues. What should have been an edge has quietly become a liability.

The chatter

Laxman Sivaramakrishnan and Lalit Modi are saying a lot of things but we'll stick to quotes around the match. DC captain Axar Patel felt his side could have "played smarter" during the chase and the "crucial timing" of wickets falling hurt them. Jos Buttler called his throw "lucky" (not really, Jos) and admitted how he "changes his shoes" if he's not scoring runs and that always seems to work. Gill began everything with "definitely" (but without the "not" that MSD so likes) and felt that he realized GT had a "chance to win" as soon as Miller didn't take the single.

Stat Snack

This was the fourth one-run defeat for DC. No other team has lost more by this margin in the IPL.

What's the latest gossip?

After BCCI's latest rule to curb movement of benched players, birdies tell us a new union is in the works. Named "Vested Interest" (yes, a nod to the red bibs they are made to wear), the group has begun drafting a charter. Their demands are ambitious. Scrap the bibs, or at least change the colour from something that looks like a hazard sign. "We are not a threat to anyone," a source told one of the birdies.

Tonight's watchlist

It's KKR vs LSG, and we will see if Shami uses the new slower ball that he developed in four days before the SRH match. Navdeep Saini was all set to feature in the IPL after two years (he called the KKR call-up a "new beginning") but rain had other ideas. Will he still find a place if both Narine and Varun return?

Reckless prediction for tonight's match

Bengal's own Shami might feel at home again tonight, fresh off that feeling at his former IPL home ground in Hyderabad.