The TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, match number 33, was played between the two heavyweight teams of the tournament as Mumbai Indians (MI) hosted Chennai Super Kings (CSK) during the game. Shardul Thakur came in to bat for the home team even though they already used the impact player option in the game.

Shardul Thakur came in to bat as a concussion substitute for Mitchell Santner, who injured his left shoulder while completing that catch from Kartik Sharma. The New Zealand captain brilliantly caught a ball from Jasprit Bumrah in the 16.5 and was soon left bewildered, holding his left shoulder in the play. He was taken off the field and Shardul Thakur has been in the area.

Why did Shardul Thakur come in to bat?

Mitchell Santner was seen with a heavy strap on his left shoulder area, which is also his bowling arm. The Kiwi did not come out to bat after the wicket of Sherfane Rutherford; instead, Shardul Thakur came in to bat. MI already used their impact sub in the game. Was it legal and a concussion equivalent to play Shardul Thakur instead of Santner? The question will remain.

The concussion substitution rule in cricket (also known as substitution) allows a player suspected of having a head injury to be substituted, protecting the safety of the player. The ICC implemented the rule in 2019, which requires a “like” replacement approved by the match referee to ensure fairness.

The masses of MI crumble

MI got off to a disastrous start, while chasing 208 runs, losing three wickets in two overs, at a score of 11/3, with Akeal Hosein taking two wickets in his first two overs. The first wicket to go was Denmark’s Malewar for a golden duck, then the other opener Quinton de Kock was removed by Mukesh Choudhary, then Hosein struck again informing Naman Dhir.

MI could only manage 29/3 in the powerplay, thanks to the excellent performance of the CSK players. This was his lowest powerplay total in IPL 2026. Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma then put up a 73-run partnership before Tilak was dismissed for 37 runs as Akeal took his third wicket of the match.

Mumbai Indians lost wickets after that partnership, and wickets continued to fall like nine pins, as they were 83/4 to 87/7. Losing four wickets in the span of four runs. While the spin duo of Akeal Hosein and Noor Ahmad created a network.

Sanju Samson show at Wankhede

Batting first for MI, CSK scored a total of 207/6 in their 20 overs with Sanju Samson scoring a brilliant century. He was unbeaten on 101 runs and it was his second century in CSK colors and fifth overall.

The last time Sanju played at their venue was in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026 semi-final against England, where almost 500+ runs were scored, and India won by 7 runs. The wicketkeeper batsman scored a brilliant innings of 89 runs. It was a first-class innings from the batsman.

Also Read: Tilak Varma had a heated argument with Jamie Overton during MI-CSK clash