On April 12, 2026, the Indian Premier League (IPL) released a star-studded match at the Wankhede Stadium between two heavyweights of Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bengaluru and that is where the rivalry between these two teams was revived again in the season.
It turned out to be the game it was billed to be, as 240 versed 222 with RCB winning by 18 runs in a run-filled match, and overtaking the long time head-to-head record of MI versus them.
There was no dearth of glitzy matchups as some of cricket’s most prominent names were in action in tandem, with Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Jasprit Bumrah on one side and Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar and Bhuvneshwar Kumar on the other.
But the battle of brothers was the main attraction of the contest, the biggest talking point of the night. The sibling rivalry went to the extreme when RCB all-rounder Krunal Pandya hit MI skipper Hardik with a sharp and quick bouncer which the latter had just dodged before the two had a fierce stare-off.
Not long after, Krunal was spotted dancing around in celebration of the wicket of Hardik Pandya who died to Jacob Duffy in the 15th over having made a 40 off 22 balls with six fours and a six. Previously, Hardik had yielded 39 runs in his four overs, and he had handled the wicket of Kohli. His older brother Krunal, the left-arm spinner, was not needed in the bat, but he registered some impressive statistics of 1 in 26 in his four overs, getting rid of Suryakumar Yadav.
Besides the surprise bouncer, changes in pace, and change of path by Krunal, the switching of release points, and a bagful of variations in addition to his traditional left arm spin gave Mumbai Indians more than a sufficient test in the middle-overs, with them on the back foot in pursuit of 241 tall despite Sherfane Rutherford in the countersattack of 31 balls with nine sixes
This is how X responded to Krunal when he surprised Hardik with a bouncer:
BROTHER vs BROTHER 😭💔
– Krunal Pandya fires a bouncer at Hardik Pandya… Hardik looks disappointed, Krunal walks in staring him down.
– Hardik gets caught out… and Krunal shows some unnecessary aggression 👀🔥
Hardik’s stare says it all.
Something is definitely NOT right… pic.twitter.com/Vi2sfcvauz
— Just In (@CricketPlus0) April 13, 2026Krunal Pandya with a bouncer against Hardik Pandya and Hardik Pandya reaction says not everything ok with both of them👀 pic.twitter.com/rQwed6jG0n
— Hitesh (@Hitesh1274) April 12, 2026Hardik Pandya vs Krunal Pandya during RCB vs MI. 🥶
Watch Krunal Pandya’s reaction after bowling that bouncer to Hardik — it almost looks like there might be a rift between them. 👀 pic.twitter.com/VYTweU5MEl
— Sonu (@Cricket_live247) April 13, 2026Krunal Pandya bowling bouncers to Hardik Pandya. Rift news are real😭😭 pic.twitter.com/Kwn260wK1j
— Pari (@BluntIndianGal) April 12, 2026Krunal Pandya gave a proper stare to Hardik Pandya !!😭🤣
Hardik Pandya couldn't even look him in the eye !! This was a proper belt treatment for Hardik Pandya 😅🔥 pic.twitter.com/CW6koAUv6x
— Gillfied⁷ (@Gill_Iss) April 13, 2026There's definitely something off between Krunal and Hardik.
Just look at the walk and reaction of Krunal after bowling that bouncer to Hardik, it looks like there might be a rift between them. They didn't even shake hands after the match. 👀 pic.twitter.com/R32YgZZ1MW
— Suprvirat (@Mostlykohli) April 13, 2026Hardik Pandya and Krunal Pandya in today's match #MIvsRCB pic.twitter.com/Q9PyWwePEL
— Deepu (@deepu_drops) April 12, 2026
