Star cricketer Rohit Sharma, who is currently sitting out for Mumbai Indians (MI) in IPL 2026 due to an injury, was seen covering his face with his hand
in disbelief in the dugout after his team lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Match 41 at the Wankhede Stadium on Wednesday, April 29. Rohit looked disappointed after MI could not defend despite posting a strong total of 243-5 in the first innings.
In Rohit's absence, MI opened with Ryan Rickelton and Will Jacks (46 off 22), who gave a solid start to the side, posting 78 in the powerplay without losing a wicket. Despite Jacks' dismissal in the eighth over, Ricketlton kept the scoreboard running from his end and received much-needed support from Naman Dhir (22 off 17) and skipper Hardik Pandya (31 off 15). Rickelton was unbeaten on 123 off just 55.
However, MI's bowlers failed miserably, with all of them conceding runs in excess of 10.63 an over. Star pacer Jasprit Bumrah went wicketless and leaked 54 in his spell, while Ashwani Kumar gave 41 in only two overs he bowled. AM Ghazanfar picked two but gave away 51 as SRH chased down the total with eight balls and six wickets remaining. Helpless Rohit could not bear the pain of the loss and looked dejected.
Like the former MI skipper, the current captain, Pandya, also expressed a similar feeling. He supported his bowlers, saying that the team did not falter because of the bowlers but for the lack of unity in the team. Pandya further said that he wants to do things for MI, which the franchise is known for, after winning five IPL titles under Rohit's captaincy.
"I think this season we don't have much option; we really need to see what all differences we can make. I won't put my bowlers under the bus. I think as an overall unit, we have not been able to do what exactly the Mumbai Indians stand for. We really need to see what all we need to work on," Pandya said at the post-match presentation.
Rohit may be unavailable for CSK vs MI
Speaking about Rohit's return to the field, he is expected to take another week to fully recover from his injury, which makes him nearly ruled out of MI's next all-important clash against the arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings, which is set to be played on Saturday, May 02, at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chepauk. He might be seen featuring in the playing XI against the Lucknow Super Giants on May 04.
