Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 24 : Gujarat Titans (GT) batting coach Matthew Hayden said that he will pass on his iconic Mongoose bat to the team's finisher Rahul Tewatia, noting his abilities as a power-hitter.
Hayden was speaking at the Shubharambh 2026, a landmark evening in Ahmedabad that brought together the full squad, franchise owners, partners, and fans on Monday. The Aussie icon is known for batting with a Mongoose bat, which features a longer handle and a shorter blade, which increases bat speed, shot power. Also, a thick, extended sweet spot with thick edges makes it absolutely valuable while batting in T20s.
During one of his innings with this bat, Hayden clobbered 93 in just 43 balls against Delhi Capitals (then known as Delhi Daredevils) back in the 2010 edition. His knock consisted of nine fours and seven sixes.
Speaking during the event, Hayden said, "If I had to hand my Mongoose bat to someone from GT, it'd have to be Rahul Tewatia. He has the power. He does a very good job with the long bat. The margins in T20 cricket is five runs, 10 runs and to have that power at the backend and frontend is good. You will get it, mate."
In four seasons with GT as a finisher, Tewatia has batted mostly down the order, scoring 591 runs in 43 innings at an average of 22.73, with strike rate of over 150 and best score of 43*.
Also, Glenn Phillips, the dynamic New Zealand cricketer known for taking absolutely sensational catches on the field, says that it is the easy catches that worry him.
"I am worried when an easy catch comes my way. Hard catches I know I will take, but easy catch, oh I am worried," Phillips said.
Gujarat Titans full squad for IPL 2026: Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Anuj Rawat, Gurnoor Singh Brar, Ishant Sharma, Jayant Yadav, Kumar Kushagra, Manav Suthar, Arshad Khan, Nishant Sindhu, Luke Wood (Rs 75 lakh) Prithvi Raj Yarra (Rs 30 lakh), Tom Banton (Rs 2 crore), Jason Holder (Rs 7 crore), Ashok Sharma (Rs 90 lakh).