IPL Bulletin For April 22: From Gujarat Titans Thump KKR to Samson Injury Update & LSG Seek Revenge Against DC

Into week five of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season 18 Shubman Gill's Gujarat Titans (GT) prove doubters wrong as they extended their lead at the top of the points table with their sixth win of the season.

GT have been quietly going about their business and find themselves two wins away from confirming a playoff spot as the dominating victory on Monday (April 21) also dented the reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders hopes of a title defence.

As the Titans inched closer to sealing a top four spot, the defending champions KKR saw their fortress breached again, while there was some off-field gossip regarding two commentators facing a possible ban for their criticism of Eden Gardens curator.

Elsewhere, struggling Rajasthan Royals suffered an injury blow before their next match. Plus, KL Rahul returns to Lucknow as Delhi Capitals aim for the double over their former captain Rishabh Pant's Lucknow Super Giants. Here is a look at the IPL Bulletin for April 22:

Gujarat Titans hand KKR their fifth loss of the season

Shubman Gill's 90 and an all-round bowling display led by Prasidh Krishna handed KKR their fifth loss of the campaign as Gujarat Titans emerged 39-run victors at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.

Apart from Gill, his opening partner Sai Sudharsan (52 off 36 balls) and Jos Buttler (41* off 23 balls) also made a telling contribution with the bat before Krishna (2/25) and Rashid Khan (2/25) helped restrict KKR to 159 in the run-chase of 199.

Captain Shubman Gill extends GT's lead at the top of the table

Gill scored a 55-ball 90 to take Titans to a challenging total with the skipper's knock proving vital in the 39-run victory. Following the match, Gill was adjudged the player of the match for his batting performance and captaincy. With six wins in eight, GT are two wins away from sealing a playoff spot.

KKR's title defence hopes suffers slight dent

Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) continued to make a mess out of its title defence as their batters once again failed to live up to their hype against a consistent Gujarat Titans (GT). This was their fifth loss in eight outings this season. Now, they need a consistent run to get back in the playoffs conversation.

GT's Sai Sudharsan takes the lead in the Orange Cap race

Gujarat Titans opener Sai Sudharsan rose to the top spot in the IPL 2025 Orange Cap standings after scoring a half-century against Kolkata Knight Riders. Sudharsan overtook Lucknow Super Giants batter Nicholas Pooran's tally of 368 runs to take first spot with 417 runs in 8 innings.

GT pacer Prasidh Krishna extended his lead in the Purple Cap standings

Gujarat Titans pacer Prasidh Krishna extended his lead atop the IPL 2025 Purple Cap standings. Prasidh's figures of two for 25 against Kolkata Knight Riders pushed his wicket tally to 16 for the season, which is four more than the chasing pack that includes Kuldeep Yadav and Noor Ahmad among two others.

CAB red flags Bhogle and Doull for criticism of Eden Gardens curator

Taking a strong exception to public criticism of their curator by Harsha Bhogle and Simon Doull, the Cricket Association of Bengal (CAB) has red flagged the two cricket experts and requested the BCCI not to assign them commentary duty for Kolkata Knight Riders home matches.

The duo got embroiled in the controversy when the former New Zealand cricketer opined that KKR should relocate their franchisee if the curator was not paying any heed to team's request for spin-friendly tracks while Bhogle said the team should get the home advantage during a panel discussion on a popular website after KKR lost two of their first three home games.

Sanju Samson to miss Rajasthan Royals match against RCB

Rajasthan Royals (RR) will line up without their captain, Sanju Samson, for their upcoming away fixture against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) on Thursday (April 24). This will be the second successive fixture that Samson will miss for RR due to a side injury he sustained during the Royals' Super Over defeat to Delhi Capitals (DC).

Rajasthan released a statement providing an update on Samson's current situation, confirming that he is undergoing rehabilitation and will not travel to Bengaluru. Riyan Parag will continue to lead for RR as they push for a playoff spot, while Dhruv Jurel will keep wickets.

LSG aim to avenge reverse fixture loss when they host Delhi Capitals

Lucknow Super Giants will look for revenge when their former captain KL Rahul is in town representing Delhi Capitals for match 40 of the ongoing season. DC had pulled off a 1-wicket win in the reverse fixture. So, Rishabh Pant & Co will aim to get one over the Capitals at the BRSABV Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday (April 22).