Mumbai (Maharashtra), April 30 (ANI): Hardik Pandya, captain of the Mumbai Indians, admitted that his team fell short of the standards expected by the franchise after their six-wicket loss to Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. Despite scoring a massive 243/5 in their first innings at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai Indians couldn’t defend the total.
Ryan Rickelton’s unbeaten 123-run knock in just 55 balls helped MI reach 243. However, SRH’s strong batting line-up, including Travis Head (76 off 30 balls), Heinrich Klaasen (65 off 30 balls), Abhishek Sharma (45 off 24 balls), and Salil Arora (30 off 10 balls), chased down the target with eight balls remaining.
This loss was MI’s sixth defeat in eight matches, putting them ninth in the IPL points table. Hardik Pandya acknowledged that his team didn’t perform up to the level expected of them as Mumbai Indians, but he remained hopeful about turning things around with support from their management and staff.
Pandya also highlighted the struggles of MI’s bowlers, who conceded at least 10 runs per over. Despite Jasprit Bumrah’s reliable performance (0/54 in 4 overs), the bowlers as a unit struggled to contain SRH’s aggressive batting. Pandya backed his bowlers and refused to blame them for the loss, though he admitted missed opportunities had hurt the team in a challenging season.
SRH now sits third with 12 points from nine matches, while Mumbai Indians remains ninth in the standings. (ANI)