The Mumbai Indians (MI) will be fighting for simply a mathematical possibility for playoff qualification in IPL 2026 as they host Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) tonight.
However, they will be doing that without captain and star all-rounder Hardik Pandya, while Rohit Sharma has returned to the side, and this switch comes amid a change in captaincy as well.
The two teams at the absolute bottom of the pile of the points table, MI in 9th and LSG in 10th positions, will clash at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday evening.
Both teams have only four points each, and both are effectively out of the race to the final four, with only a miraculous and nigh-impractical mathematical possibility keeping the ‘E’ away from their status yet.
Mumbai Indians, a legacy team, would hate to finish once again with the wooden spoon. They have been booed by their own fans recently and would look to fight for their pride tonight at the Wankhede, but skipper Pandya won’t be at the field.
MI vs LSG: Why Is Hardik Pandya Not Playing Today?
Suryakumar Yadav is captaining MI today against LSG. SKY confirmed that Hardik is not well and hence is missing this fixture.
MI vs LSG: Is Rohit Sharma playing today?
Suryakumar also confirmed the return of Rohit Sharma, a statement that was met with a huge cheer by the MI fans. Rohit has been out of action since April 12 due to a hamstring strain.
SKY won the toss and elected to field first. Rohit is not named in the playing XI. Therefore, he will come in as the Impact Player when MI bats.
Further, with Hardik unwell, Corbin Bosch gets in the side again for another opportunity, replacing Trent Boult. Will Jacks opened the innings with Rickelton in MI’s last game against CSK. With Rohit back, Jacks will slot in the middle order.
Mumbai Indians (Playing XI): Naman Dhir, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Suryakumar Yadav (C), Will Jacks, Tilak Varma, Raj Bawa, AM Ghazanfar, Corbin Bosch, Jasprit Bumrah, Deepak Chahar, Raghu Sharma.
Impact Subs: Rohit Sharma, Shardul Thakur, Mayank Rawat, Trent Boult, Robin Minz
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