Gujarat Titans (GT) on Tuesday (March 10) announced the appointment of legendary Australia opener Matthew Hayden as their batting coach for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season.

This will be Hayden’s first high-profile coaching stint in the IPL, having previously worked as a commentator in the league. The southpaw had featured in the first three seasons of IPL, representing Chennai Super Kings.

“Good batting applies pressure. Great batting owns the game. That’s the standard we want to set at Gujarat Titans," Hayden said in a release after his appointment.

In IPL 2026, Hayden will be part of Ashish Nehra-led coaching staff and will work with a number of international stars such as Shubman Gill, Jos Buttler, Glenn Phillips, Jason Holder, Washington Sundar, among others.

“Matthew’s appointment comes at a pivotal phase in our journey. As a franchise committed to excellence and long-term success, we are constantly focused on strengthening our cricketing ecosystem. His experience at the highest level, coupled with his ability to mentor emerging talent, will be instrumental in shaping our batting identity for the seasons ahead," Vikram Solanki, who is Director of Cricket at Gujarat Titans, stated in a release.

Matthew Hayden represented Australia in 272 matches across formats, amassing 15,064 runs at an average of 47.82 with 40 centuries and 69 fifties. He was also the leading run-scorer in the 2007 edition of T20 World Cup with 265 runs in six innings at a strike rate of 144.80. In nine T20Is, he made 308 runs at an average of 51.33 and a strike rate of 143.92, including four fifties.

His aggressive yet technically robust approach to batting laid early foundations for the evolution of powerplay dominance in white-ball cricket. He also featured in 32 IPL matches, scoring 1,107 runs at an strike rate of over 137 with eight fifties and a best score of 93.