Hardik Pandya might miss out on playing the Mumbai Indians’ next Indian Premier League 2026 match against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru on May 10 in Raipur as the team skipper has not travelled with the team for their fixture, Cricbuzz reported.
Hardik was out of MI’s previous game against the Lucknow Super Giants due to what was officially conveyed as “back spasm” by the MI management. Suryakumar Yadav stood for him and helped MI win their only third game of the season to keep their campaign just about alive.ย
Surya might be captaining in the next game too if Hardik is not there. As per Cricbuzz, the all-rounder was not seen with the team at the Mumbai airport on Terminal 1 when it assembled for the travel.
Rickelton shares update on Hardik
Meanwhile, MI opener Ryan Rickelton spoke about Hardik after the team’s six-wicket win over the LSG, giving an insight into when the skipper can return. “I donโt know when heโs expected to be back. I found out this afternoon that he had back spasms, so Iโm unaware of the extent of it. I donโt want to call it an injury; Iโm unaware of how bad it is or what heโs feeling. But Iโm sure heโll be with the group again as we head to Raipur this week,” Rickelton said.
MI defeat LSG to stay alive in playoffs
MI defeated LSG after chasing down 229 in the 19th over to register their third win in the tournament, which also keeps them alive in the race for the playoffs. The clash began with LSG coming in to bat first after losing the toss. The side got off to a subpar start as Josh Inglis departed early on a score of 13 runs. However, the performance of Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran set the stage for the visitors.ย
The win kept MI just about alive in the race for the playoffs. The five-time champions have just three wins from their 10 matches, tallying just six points. They are reeling down in ninth place of the points table and need to win every match to reach 14 and keep any chance of qualifying for the playoffs.
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