Mumbai Indians (MI) will be desperate to get back to winning ways as they are currently languishing at the 9th spot on the IPL 2026 points table after a crushing 103-run defeat at the hands of CSK. After starting the tournament on a positive note, the team suffered four back-to-back defeats. Just when it looked like the five-time champions were on track to returning to winning ways, they lost yet another game, putting their chances of making it to the playoffs in jeopardy.
MI will be up against a formidable SRH on Wednesday and are likely to make any changes to their playing XI from the previous game in order to add more firepower in Mumbai. Rohit Sharma, who suffered an hamstring injury earlier this month, is unlikely to feature in the game. Meanwhile, MI’s experiment to play Danish Malewar failed and he is expected to pave way for Ryan Rickleton’s return. MI also desperately need to improve their bowling.
Predicted MI playing XI vs SRH
Quinton de Kock, Ryan Rickleton, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Naman Dhir, Hardik Pandya (C), Sherfane Rutherford, Allah Ghazanfar, Krish Bhagat, Ashwani Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah
Impact player: Keshav Maharaj
MI decided to use Danish as an opener for the game against CSK in the absence of Rickleton, and the experiment backfired. Although Malewar has a prolific record in domestic cricket, he flopped on his maiden outing in IPL 2026 as he was dismissed for a golden duck. Therefore, he is expected to make way for Rickleton in the playing XI against SRH.
de Kock is expected to continue opening the innings for MI as there is no clarity on Rohit Sharma’s return. On Tuesday, ahead of the pre-match press conference, a MI spokesperson informed that the Hitman is progressing well from his injury and that a call on his availability for the game against SRH will be taken before the toss on Wednesday.
MI will have to fix their bowling woes as that is what cost them the previous game. The spin unit will be spearheaded by Allah Ghazanfar, who bagged two wickets in the previous game, while the team could also opt to use Will Jacks as an impact player if needed. That will give them a boost in both batting and bowling. There is also the option of using Keshav Maharaj, who was signed as an injury replacement for Mitchell Santner, as an impact player to bolster their spin unit.
The pace unit will be spearheaded by Bumrah and will comprise of Ashwani, captain Pandya and Krish.
Cricket
Riyan Parag caught using banned vape inside dressing room during PBKS vs RR IPL 2026 match
