- By Namrata Vijay
- Tue, 31 Mar 2026 06:24 PM (IST)
- Source:JND
GT vs PBKS IPL 2026: Sai Sudharsan earned his debut Test cap for India on the back of his consistency; he also won the Orange Cap and Emerging Player award during IPL 2025, scoring 759 runs and looking completely unstoppable as an opener for the Gujarat Titans. He will try to repeat his heroics in the ongoing season, as many would expect a dip in his form during their tournament opener against the Punjab Kings on Tuesday. He will try to make sure it's not a severe dip.
The Gujarat-based franchise's new batting coach is one of the most lethal left-handed openers, and Sai Sudharsan's training with Matthew Hayden will only improve his strength. Hayden heaped praise on the youngster, as he was really impressed by Sudharsan's workload during the pre-season camp.
“You’ve just had Ricky Ponting in here. Ricky Ponting was one of the hardest-working cricketers that I came across in my time. Sai Sudharsan would be a multiple of two, as to what Ricky did,” Matthew Hayden compared Sudharsan to Ricky Ponting, who is considered one of the best batters in the history of cricket.
ALSO READ: Ashwin Strongly Rebuts Calls For Early India Selection Of Vaibhav Sooryavanshi
Sudharsan exemplifies ever-improving modern players.
“Coming from a completely different mindset of the last two years, what I’ve seen is an immense resource that is afforded to players to continue to grow in their game. As Ricky said, you don’t get better by doing less of it. And Sudharsan is a phenomenal example of that", he added.
As far as Hayden is concerned, Sudharsan is one of the best examples of how players have grown like never before by maintaining their determination at the top level.
ALSO READ: PBKS vs GT, IPL 2026: From Sai Sudharsan To Arshdeep Singh, 5 Key Players Who Could Decide Tonight’s Clash
“The professional level has gone up a complete notch since I retired. They improve by the day because they’re willing to invest time, and the game is willing to invest the resource. Not only the fitness but the batting techniques and batability, if you like. You see an evolution of a batsman now… There is a plethora of opportunities for players to get incrementally better, and Sai is one of those guys, like Shubman, who has embraced that", he said.
“It’s a privilege to watch how they go about their preparation", Hyden concluded while talking about Sudharsan and his opening partner and skipper Shubman Gill, who also come under this category.
Gujarat Titans will lock horns with Punjab Kings in Mullanpur during their tournament opener, which is being coached by Hayden's fellow teammate, Ricky Ponting. GT were relying heavily on their top-batting order last year, and Sudharsan will try to play a huge role for this franchise yet again.