dailyloe.com – Mumbai Indians face uncertainty over captain Rohit Sharma’s availability for their Indian Premier League match against Punjab Kings on Thursday. The five-time champions are second from bottom in the 2026 IPL standings. Punjab Kings are second and remain unbeaten this season. The teams last met in the second Qualifier last year.
Rohit Sharma retired hurt on 19 off 13 balls in the previous match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru. He appeared to suffer a hamstring issue during that innings. Sharma arrived late for training on Wednesday evening. He only participated in light warm-ups, some jogging, and a short net session.
There is no official confirmation yet on his availability for the Punjab Kings match. Mumbai Indians have struggled with both batting and bowling so far this season. Their bowling attack has been a particular concern. The team must decide on a potential replacement opener if Sharma is unfit.
One option is to bring in overseas player Quinton de Kock as an opener. This would require leaving out one other overseas player. The other overseas players are Sherfane Rutherford, Mitchell Santner, and Trent Boult. The team must manage its four overseas player slots.
If Mumbai wants to keep Rutherford, Santner, and Boult, they could consider a direct Indian replacement. Vidarbha opener Danish Malewar is one such option. Another Indian option is Robin Minz. These changes would not affect the overseas player quota.
The team could also change its bowling attack by leaving out Trent Boult for Ashwani Kumar. This would allow Quinton de Kock to be included in the playing eleven. However, dropping Boult may be difficult given the team’s bowling struggles. Jasprit Bumrah is yet to take a wicket this season.
The rest of the Mumbai Indians bowling unit has not performed as expected. Mumbai Indians have the highest economy rate in the competition at 11.3. Their bowling average is 55.00. Delhi Capitals have the next highest bowling average at 35.60.
Mumbai have not struggled as much in the powerplay and death overs. They have been the most expensive team in the middle overs. Their middle-over economy rate is 11.08. This is more than a run higher than Chennai Super Kings’ rate of 9.85.
Meanwhile, Mumbai Indians player Will Jacks is still not available. He is currently on his way to India. His arrival date has not been specified in the team’s latest update. The team must plan for the Punjab Kings match without him.[]
Source: Yahoo Sports
