Ahmedabad, May 13 (IANS) Former India wicketkeeper-batter Saba Karim lavished praise on Kagiso Rabada, calling him the leader of the pace attack after the South African spearheaded Gujarat Titans’ (GT) dominant 82-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2026 at the Narendra Modi Stadium.

Rabada continued his outstanding season with another impactful spell, returning figures of 3-28 in four overs as Gujarat bundled out Hyderabad for just 86 while defending 168/5. The fast bowler now has 21 wickets in IPL 2026 and remains one of the leading wicket-takers of the tournament.

“With the kind of form he is in, Rabada has become the leader of this GT pace attack. Once again, he stuck to his strengths brilliantly. He generated extra bounce off the surface and looked fiery throughout his spell,” Karim told Jio Hotstar. “The way he planned Abhishek Sharma’s wicket was wonderful to watch. Even against Ishan Kishan, who looked solid whenever the ball was pitched in his zone, Rabada smartly kept the ball short and away from him to force the mistake. Overall, he sets the tone for the rest of the bowlers. He is the one who leads the bowling plans, and the others follow his lead,” he added.

Rabada played a crucial role in dismantling SRH’s top order after Mohammed Siraj had provided the perfect start by dismissing Travis Head for a duck in a wicket-maiden opening over. Rabada then removed both Abhishek Sharma and Ishan Kishan before dismissing Smaran Ravichandran to leave SRH struggling at 34/4 inside the powerplay.

After Rabada’s fiery spell, Jason Holder ensured there was no recovery for Hyderabad with figures of 3/20, while Prasidh Krishna picked up two wickets.

Earlier, half-centuries from Sai Sudharsan (61) and Washington Sundar (50) guided the Gujarat Titans to 168/5 after being asked to bat first.

With this win, the Gujarat Titans have come on top of the points table with 16 points in 12 matches. They will next face Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on May 16 as they look to seal their playoff birth.

–IANS

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