The Mumbai Indians (MI) which began with a fairy tale beginning and tags on early favorites, found themselves going out later on with fires. The hit of their star batter Rohit Sharma has come at the worst opportune time in the face of the franchise grappling with three-match losing streak in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season.
The Hitman sustained a blow as he bat in the run chase against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Wankhede stadium. On 19 he retired with a hurt, and cast a scan to ascertain the amount of the matter.
The veteran batter attended the practice session before the match, but, probably, will not be part of MI against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Thursday, April 16.
Speaking of which, we would like to consider the three options that MI could use MI to replace Rohit Sharma in the playing XI of the IPL 2026 game against PBKS.
1. Replacing the whole combination with Quinton de Kock and Ashwani Kumar.
In theory, MI are only able to include one traditional opening batter in the whole team that could be used to replace Rohit Sharma, and it is the more experienced Quinton de Kock. The South African is still to be seen in his second stint with the franchise, but a desperate state of affairs may result in his finding his way into the playing XI.
Although the presence of the wicket-keeper batter would be more than welcome and the experience, including the chemistry between him and his fellow national team member Ryan Rickelton, would be beneficial, MI would have to change up their mix and make it happen. It is only possible to replace an Indian opener with one overseas and have an all-overseas opening pair in case any of the Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult, or Sherfane Rutherford is dropped.
Allah Ghazanfar and Mayank Markande have failed, and MI must have Mitchell Santner in the mix in any way as the lead spinner. Likewise, with poor performances of Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma, Sherfane Rutherford holds significance as well. The Caribbean ace even scored a valiant 71 runs off 31 deliveries in MI’s most recent match.
Consequently, the South African team can only afford to have Quinton de Kock in the playing XI, when it drops Trent Boult. In filling in the gap created by the bowling unit, one can consider an Indian left-arm pacer in Ashwani Kumar who has already established himself in the few chances he has had since his debut last season.
Given the fact that pace trio comprising of Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult and Deepak Chahar, has not paid off yet with MI, a pinch of youth in Ashwani Kumar could be the solution to the MI bowling ills.
2. Using Suryakumar Yadav or Naman Dhir as an opener and shuffle the batting order
If MI wish to keep their existing overseas combination intact, then they might have to compromise their batting order. And as queer as this may sound, this may turn out to be a blessing in disguise. Even currently, the in-form Sherfane Rutherford is arguably batting too low on the batting order and so is the case with Naman Dhir.
As the all-Indian middle-order block of Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma and Hardik Pandya can play most of the time, the likes of Rutherford and Dhir have been avoided as lower middle-order players, when they can be so much more.
Another possible left field move would be to shuffle up one of the middle order batters to the first place which would fix the batting order as a whole; this would provide the opportunity to Rutherford and Dhir to participate in the decision-making process as well. Suryakumar Yadav is one such candidate that can be distinguished in the task. It would assist him to regain his lost feel and it also had the potential of bringing out the best in Tilak Varma at No.3.
Suryakumar Yadav has limited experience as an opener, especially in overseas conditions. However, he did begin his stint with Mumbai Indians at the top of the order in 2018. In fact, he has opened in 12 IPL matches, scoring 441 runs at an average of 36.75 and a strike rate of 136.11. Moreover, he also opened during India’s tour of the West Indies cricket team ahead of the 2022 T20 World Cup, where he scored 135 runs at an impressive strike rate of 168.75.
Meanwhile, as mentioned earlier, Naman Dhir remains an underutilised option for MI. He even batted as high as No. 3 in the early stages of his IPL career, particularly in Suryakumar’s absence. However, the team has largely used him as a finisher in recent matches.
Therefore, considering his ability, MI could promote Dhir to the top of the order to maximise his potential while keeping the middle order intact.
3. Find replacement in the bench like Danish Malewar or Robin Minz to substitute as a like-for-like.
One last circumstance where MI are not willing to use any of their existing options in the playing XI as Rohit Sharma’s replacement at the top, and don’t want to tinker with their overseas combination as well, they have nowhere to turn to but their bench.
Although the team lacks a direct like-for-like replacement, it still has a few viable short-term options. Notably, Robin Minz and Danish Malewar have emerged as potential candidates for the role.
To begin with, Minz featured in the lower middle order for Mumbai Indians last season but failed to make a significant impact. However, the management could still tap into his explosive potential as they look to match other teams in aggressive powerplay batting.
Meanwhile, Malewar presents a more unconventional option. Primarily a middle-order batter who represents Vidarbha cricket team in domestic cricket, the 21-year-old lacks extensive T20 experience. Nevertheless, he impressed in the inaugural Vidarbha Pro T20 League in 2025, finishing as the second-highest run-scorer.
Furthermore, while representing Bharat Rangers, Malewar batted at No. 3 and played six matches, amassing 318 runs at an outstanding average of 79.50 and a strike rate of 161.42. Notably, he also scored the only century of the tournament, underlining his potential.
