Just hours after suffering a disappointing defeat in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 final, the Gujarat Titans were involved in a frightening incident when their team bus reportedly suffered a short circuit while returning from the Narendra Modi Stadium on Sunday night.
According to reports, the electrical fault caused smoke to fill the vehicle, prompting an immediate evacuation of all players and support staff. Fortunately, no injuries were reported, and everyone on board was safely escorted out of the bus.
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The incident occurred as the team was making its way back to the hotel following a five-wicket loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL 2026 final. While all members of the squad remained unharmed, the unexpected breakdown left the players and staff stranded for nearly an hour, adding to an already difficult evening for the franchise.
The scare came at the end of a demanding travel schedule for the Titans. The team had travelled from Dharamsala to Mullanpur on May 27 ahead of their Qualifier 2 clash against Rajasthan Royals on May 29. Their subsequent journey to Ahmedabad on May 30 was significantly delayed due to adverse weather conditions in Mullanpur, resulting in the squad reaching home late on Saturday evening.
The hectic itinerary raised questions about whether fatigue may have played a role in Gujarat Titans’ underwhelming performance in the final, where they managed only 155/8 before RCB comfortably chased down the target.
However, Gujarat Titans Director of Cricket Vikram Solanki dismissed fatigue as an excuse for the defeat.
“I don’t want to take away from the fact that RCB have won by simply stating that we’ve had this number of games in these short days and we’re fatigued and that’s not really what we’re about,” Solanki said during the post-match press conference.
He acknowledged that the team’s total was below par but praised the players for their efforts in defending it.
“Admittedly, it was a below-par total, but they showed great fight to try and defend it. We might make an assessment of what we might have done differently, that’s a given. But I think you’ve got to accept that the opposition sometimes play well as well,” he added.
Despite the disappointment of missing out on the IPL title and the subsequent bus scare, the Gujarat Titans can take solace in the fact that all players and staff emerged from the incident unharmed.
(This story is published from a syndicated feed)
