Hardik Pandya missed his second consecutive match for Mumbai Indians on Saturday as he remained unavailable for the IPL 2026 clash against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Raipur. This is the third time this season that the MI captain has missed match action.

Pandya had already missed Mumbai’s previous clash There continue to be fitness concerns around the all-rounder, who suffered back spasms against Lucknow Super Giants. After the toss, Mumbai confirmed that their captain has still not been cleared by the medical team.

IPLRCB vs MI: Update | Achievement:

Explaining the captain’s absence, MI said, “Hardik has not been cleared by the medical team to take the field.”

With Pandya unavailable again, Suryakumar Yadav stepped up to lead the team after joining the team following the birth of his daughter earlier this week.

Interestingly, when the Mumbai team initially traveled to Raipur, neither Hardik nor Suryakumar were with the group. Whereas Suryakumar stayed there due to family commitmentsPandya was still recovering after suffering from back spasms during MI’s recent phase of matches.

Hardik eventually joined the team on May 7 in Raipur, but the franchise decided not to risk him again against RCB.

The MI captain was last seen during Mumbai’s clash against Chennai Super Kings before missing the win over LSG and has now missed the RCB match as well.

Why is Hardik Pandya out of IPL action?

Pandya’s current absence This is related to the back spasm I suffered earlier this week.

The injury is understood to be a minor one, but Mumbai’s medical staff has advised rest given the busy schedule and the importance of managing his workload properly.

Although Hardik traveled to Raipur and was around the team, he still did not get full clearance in time for the RCB match.

This is now the third time in IPL 2026 that Pandya has not played a match for Mumbai, adding to a disappointing season for the franchise captain, both individually and collectively.

Mumbai have struggled badly for consistency this year and Hardik’s fitness problems towards the end of the tournament have compounded those problems.

Can MI qualify for IPL 2026 playoffs?

Mumbai Indians are currently placed ninth in the IPL 2026 points table with only six points from 10 matches.

With only four league matches left before the clash with RCB, MI’s playoff equation had already become extremely difficult.

The five-time champions now effectively need to win every remaining match and hope results elsewhere also go in their favor to keep their playoff hopes alive.

While Mumbai managed to defeat Lucknow Super Giants in their last match under the captaincy of Suryakumar, the margin for error is almost nil at this stage of the season.

A defeat against RCB will take them even closer to elimination.

RCB vs MI: Playing XI

Playing XI of Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton (wk), Naman Dheer, Suryakumar Yadav (c), Tilak Verma, Will Jacques, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Jasprit Bumrah, AM Ghazanfar.

Effect Sub: Trent Boult, Raghu Sharma, Mayank Rawat, Robin Minz, Shardul Thakur

RCB Playing XI: Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethel, Rajat Patidar (captain), Jitesh Sharma (wicketkeeper), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Suyyash Sharma, Rasikh Salaam Dar

Effect Sub: Devdutt Padikkal, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Swapnil Singh, Venkatesh Iyer

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Vaibhav Suryavanshi of Rajasthan Royals (ANI photo)

Fifteen-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi once again showed why he is considered one of the most exciting young talents in the IPL, but Matthew Hayden believe in Rajasthan Royals The opening batsman still has to learn an important lesson in T20 cricket.Suryavanshi looked dangerous from the start as Rajasthan chased a mammoth target of 230 against Gujarat Titans at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. The left-handed batsman scored 36 runs in just 16 balls and gave Royals hope of achieving a lofty target. However, Mohammad Siraj Kishore was removed at a crucial moment, and Rajasthan never recovered from the blow and eventually suffered a crushing 77-run defeat.

RR bowling coach Shane Bond criticized his bowlers after they once again gave away a score of over 200 during the defeat to Gujarat Titans on Saturday, May 9. Rajasthan gave 229 runs in the first innings Against GT at Sawai Mansingh Stadium and lost the match by 77 runs.

In the last three matches, Rajasthan have scored 229, 222, 226 runs before losing to Gujarat. During the clash in Jaipur Jofra Archer had a very bad outingHe bowled one over in the last 11 balls and gave away 46 runs during his three-over spell. The defeat also means RR have lost three games in Jaipur this season.

In the press conference after the match, Bond said that Rajasthan did not play well in the conditions. He said that RR bowlers need to think outside the box.

Bond said the decision against GT was not consistent enough

“We haven’t played well in the conditions that we know we’re in. We’ve been outmatched by our opponent,” Bond said. “I look at the bowlers, they just have to be better, right? You have to think outside the box a little bit. There are two things: decision making and execution. I think tonight, you probably noticed that the execution wasn’t consistent for quite a while.

‘Bowlers need to think differently’

with IPL Seeing the batsmen being overly aggressive, Bond said the bowlers need to think outside the box to deal with them and get results.

“And I think if you look across the board in the IPL, that’s just what has happened. The batsmen, they’re coming in, they’re playing ultra-aggressive, and putting pressure on the bowlers. So as a bowler, you have to ask, OK, ‘What can I do differently?’ [They] I have to spend more time with the analysts to know where each batsman is going to go… which areas they are going to score in,” Bond said.

RR’s bowling coach said that the bowlers are not developing themselves and claimed that the only way to go about things would be to feel the opportunity to shine amidst all the batting chaos.

“I may have to bowl short runs and long runs. I have to be able to come around the wicket and bowl to both sides. So, when you see bowlers doing the same thing, game after game after game, getting the same results, my question would be: You have to do something different and develop your game. Now you look at the batsmen, they are playing uppercuts, they are reverses, they are scooping. They have developed a lot of range. Shots. So a bowler has to develop his range of skills as well. I think it’s a great opportunity for any bowler: ‘If I can do that, I can earn myself a lot of money and become a superstar.’

“I don’t think you’ve seen that consistently. It’s certainly not easy for the bowlers, but you can either be scared of it, scared of what’s going on out there, or see it as an opportunity to get better and maybe make a name for yourself,” Bond said.

After a week’s break, RR will next face DC on May 17.

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Virat Kohli (Image Credit: BCCI/IPL)

Virat Kohli is once again on the verge of rewriting the record books. Ahead of Royal Challengers Bangalore’s clash against Mumbai Indians on Sunday, Kohli is just 28 runs away from becoming the first batsman in IPL history to score 1,000 runs against the five-time champions.In RCB’s last innings against MI at the Wankhede Stadium, Kohli crossed the milestone of 1,000 runs in T20 cricket against Mumbai Indians, which included runs in both the IPL and Champions League T20. Kohli scored 50 runs in 38 balls in that match and his total now stands at 1,030 runs in T20 against MI. However, in the IPL alone, he has 972 runs against him, which means he needs just 28 more runs to become the first batsman to score 1,000 IPL runs against Mumbai Indians. His consistency against one of the league’s most successful teams highlights both his longevity and dominance at the highest level.

Royal Challengers Bangalore batsman Jacob Bethel opened up on the recent debate between Alastair Cook and Kevin Pietersen regarding the role of IPL in his career. Cook had questioned Bethel’s decision to remain with RCB despite spending time on the bench. He suggested that regular county cricket for Warwickshire would help Bethel’s development more than sitting out games in the IPL.

However, Peterson strongly disagreedEmphasizing that it has to be part of IPL The environment itself was invaluable to a young player like Bethel. Pietersen said training with elite cricketers, learning from top coaches and experiencing the pressure of franchise cricket could help Bethel develop faster.

‘I’m happy where I am’

Bethel defended his decision, saying that playing with the best players in the world would improve his game, while insisting that he was happy with his career path.

“Everyone thinks differently, but from a personal point of view, I think I have taken the right decision. This is the marquee tournament of the year, with almost all the best cricketers in the world playing,” Bethel said at the press conference ahead of RCB’s match against Mumbai Indians on Sunday.

Bethel said, “I definitely don’t think it will hurt my career or stop me from getting better. I think it will be the opposite. Everyone is allowed to think what they want, but at the end of the day, I’m pretty happy with where I’m at.”

Bethel could not perform consistently for RCB in IPL 2026, scoring 43 runs in four matches at an average of 10.75 and a strike rate of 138.70. Bethel spent most of the season on the bench and only got his chance when opening batsman Phil Salt suffered a finger injury and returned home for scans. Since then, the young England batsman has opened alongside Virat Kohli as RCB looks to fill the void left by Salt’s absence.

Meanwhile, if RCB beats MI in Raipur and tightens its grip on the playoff spot, they have a strong chance of topping the table.

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