Gujarat Titans middle-order batter Rahul Tewatia put up a lone hand in what was otherwise a gloomy night for his team with the bat against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Qualifier 1 of the IPL 2026. Tewatia scored 68 from 43 balls as GT were bowled out for just 162 in their chase of a mammoth 255 against the defending champions at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala.
Tewatia went on to break a major MS Dhoni record with his fighting knock that featured four sixes and eight fours. His 68 is now the highest score by any player batting at No.7 or lower in an IPL playoff match.
The previous record belonged to Dhoni, who had slammed an unbeaten 63 from 45 balls in the IPL 2013 final against the Mumbai Indians in a losing cause after his team was 36/5 when he entered the crease.
Highest scores in IPL playoffs (batting at No.7 or lower):
1 - Rahul Tewatia: 68 off 43 balls vs GT in 2026
2 - MS Dhoni: 63* off 45 balls vs MI in 2013
3 - Brad Hodge: 54* off 29 balls vs SRH in 2013
4 - Andre Russell: 49* off 25 balls vs RR in 2018
5 - Carlos Brathwaite: 43* off 29 balls vs CSK in 2018
Tewatia only saving grace for the Titans
The Titans were up against a mammoth task against RCB, who had put up 254/4 batting first after Rajat Patidar's unbeaten 33-ball 93. GT had never made anything above 233 batting first or second, and their highest chase was 205. The scoreboard pressure was already high and rocketed to the sky, considering this was a playoff game.
GT were already half down when Tewatia walked in to bat in the sixth over with the score being 51/5. The game was gone, and it was all about damage control and spending time in the middle. He had not had many opportunities to bat for long and would be content with the chance he got in Qualifier 1, as it would give him and his team confidence heading into Qualifier 2, where they will face the winner of the Eliminator between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals.
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