Hardik Pandya won’t be leading the Mumbai Indians (MI) against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Wankhede Stadium. Off the back of three consecutive losses, MI are under immense pressure. To make the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 Playoffs, they need to turn things around now, or it’ll be too late for them. But Hardik can’t help them do that.
Why is Hardik Pandya not playing today’s MI vs LSG match?
“Hardik Pandya is unwell with a back spasm; hence, Suryakumar Yadav is captain for today’s game,” MI said in an official statement before the toss.
After flicking the coin and opting to bowl first, Suryakumar iterated the same but didn’t mention that he had back spasms. “He’s (Hardik) not well tonight, so just going into his shoes. But yeah, the rest, everything is fine,” Suryakumar said at the toss.
Rohit Sharma returns
Hardik’s absence wasn’t the only change MI made. They’ve dropped Trent Boult for Corbin Bosch, which will improve their batting depth and bowling post the powerplay. To ensure they have quality with the new ball, Deepak Chahar has been brought back. The biggest change was Rohit Sharma‘s return. The veteran opener has been out since April 12, when he sustained a hamstring injury. He’s missed 5 matches since. But he returns now.
Raj Bawa replaces injured Hardik Pandya
Although there isn’t really any replacement for Hardik, MI has tried their best. They’ve brought Raj Bawa into the side against LSG. The 23-year-old made his IPL debut in 2022 for the Punjab Kings and played 3 games for MI last season. He comes in as a like-for-like replacement as a left-handed fast bowler and right-handed batter.
Mumbai Indians Playing XI: Ryan Rickelton (wk)✈️, Naman Dhir, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Varma, Will Jacks✈️, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch✈️, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, Allah Ghazanfar✈️, Raghu Sharma
Impact Subs: Rohit Sharma, Mayank Rawat, Robin Minz, Shardul Thakur, Trent Boult✈️
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