TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the 24th match, was between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Punjab Kings (PBKS). The match is being played at the Wankhede stadium in Mumbai and it will be a high-scoring encounter. MI won their first match against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), and have not won a match since.
PBKS won the draw and elected to participate first. During the toss, Hardik Pandya gave an update on former team captain Rohit Sharma as the opener suffered a hamstring injury and was ruled out for tonight’s clash. Pandya also informed that Mitchell Santner will miss out as the New Zealand captain is unwell.
Rohit Sharma misses out
Rohit Sharma’s failure will be a big blow to the MI team as over the years, he has been responsible for giving the five-time winners an explosive start and his leadership contributions will also be missing in this game. Rohit is the team’s leading run-getter at the moment.
This season, Rohit Sharma has had a sensational touch and has scored 137 runs in four matches at a strike rate of 165.06. Rohit Sharma last missed an IPL match in the 2025 season in MI’s clash against LSG after suffering an IT (iliotibial) band injury in his knee.
Rohit Sharma out of last match: Hardik Pandya
Mitchell Santner was expensive in the last game; however, he is a crucial member of the MI setup of late. On a course like Wankhede, his experience would have been a gain for the five-time winner. As the pitch is a bit dry, it would have gained some spin during the match.
During the toss, Pandya, when asked, “What is the injury news because you have been plagued by injuries?” He replied: “Yes, Rohit is out from the last game. It will take him a couple of games to see exactly where he is. And Mitchell is not well either. So Mitchell Santner is also not available. So, yes, we have a couple of changes. Quinny comes back and we have a debutant in Mayank Rawat.”
Missing those big moments: Pandya on MI plans
Hardik Pandya also stated that MI has been looking forward to the remaining matches and will try to grab the opportunities they get and win the matches. It is a do-or-die situation for Mumbai as if they lose another match, they will be out of the playoff equation.
“We would have loved to bowl first too, but yes, good pitch to lose. (But is it time to make a move?) Yes, it’s time to play some good cricket, it’s time to get that win. So, yes, I think we played decent cricket. It’s just that in a couple of overs, we haven’t been able to capitalize and we’ve been missing those big moments.”
“And we’re just going to talk about it and make sure that in this game we go out and make sure those little battles continue to be won. Yes, I think in the last game we bowled four 20+ overs. I think at any time in T20 cricket, that’s not acceptable.”
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