Mumbai Indians (MI) have dropped seamers Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar and the result was overwhelming in their final IPL 2026 clash against the Gujarat Titans on Monday, April 20 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

After four losses in a row, Mumbai Indians pulled off a stunning comeback with a huge 99-run win over Gujarat Titans (GT), with most of the credit going to their disciplined bowling attack at the Narendra Modi Stadium. With this victory, MI jumped to seventh place in the table.

Kris Srikkanth mocks Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar after Mumbai Indians crush Gujarat Titans

After MI’s dominant win over GT in Ahmedabad, Kris Srikkanth has brutally and sarcastically attacked Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar as the franchise has almost found the right bowling combination without its senior players in the tournament.

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In his unfiltered version of his bold move, the 1983 World Cup winner suggested that Mumbai Indians should prefer to keep Shardul and Chahar away from the playing XI rather than risk another costly spell in the ongoing IPL 2026.

Kris Srikkanth said on his Cheeky Cheeka podcast on YouTube: “Thank God, MI sent these two to the shed. At this point, I’m sure MI would be telling them, ‘Both of you go take a seat in the shed and don’t come out again.'”

Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar’s struggles in IPL 2026

In fact, Shardul Thakur had started his IPL journey with MI on a high note. The all-rounder picked up 3 wickets against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and won the Player of the Match award. But, in the next few matches, Shardul had a lot of problems with his line and length.

Thakur had some intense racing and his economy rating crossed 13.5 which became a major concern for the team which eventually left him out of the GT clash. On the other hand, Deepak Chahar’s bowling performances have been even more worrying.

Chahar failed to take wickets in the powerplay and was dripping like water flowing from the tap. In three matches, he managed to take just one wicket while conceding runs at a very high rate, close to 15 per over, and was also shown the door.

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Ashwani Kumar and Krish Bhagat shine as Srikkanth hails MI’s bold decision

Mumbai Indians replaced Deepak and Shardul Thakur with young pacers Ashwani Kumar and Krish Bhagat and the move paid off well against the Gujarat Titans. Ashwani produced an astonishing spell, taking four wickets and conceding 24 runs in his four overs.

On the other hand, Krish was bowled for two overs and gave away just 10 runs. Jasprit Bumrah made his presence felt with 1/15 in three overs against GT.

Praising the young duo, the former Indian chief selector said: “Just take a look at the extremes they bowled – pure discipline at Test level.”

Srikkanth backs Jasprit Bumrah to continue open bowling for MI

Srikkanth feels that Bumrah’s opening spell gave momentum to Mumbai Indians, and then Ashwani took care of the rest of the things. He added: “Getting the first step to Bumrah and him taking a wicket off the first ball is where MI got the momentum. All the energy and atmosphere went up with that wicket. That’s why Bumrah should bowl with the new ball.”