Injured Hardik Pandya Training Alone Raises More Questions Than Answers Ahead Of MI vs PBKS Game, Report Gives Grim Update
Hardik Pandya on Tuesday posted videos of him training alone at the Reliance Corporate Park on Tuesday. He could be seen batting under floodlights and also hit some big shots
- Hardik Pandya, who has battled a back spasm, trained alone for over three hours on Tuesday
- The MI captain missed matches against Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bengaluru due to the injury
- Pandya is unlikely to join Mumbai Indians squad for Thursday's match against Punjab Kings in Dharamsala
Hardik Pandya on Tuesday posted videos of him training alone at the Reliance Corporate Park on Tuesday. He could be seen batting under floodlights and also hit some big shots. According to a report, Pandya spent over three hours in training on Tuesday. The MI captain was down with a back spasm and missed the side's matches against Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Suryakumar Yadav led MI in Pandya's absence.
Pandya is "unlikely" to link up with the MI squad for the fixture against Punjab Kings in Dharamsala on Thursday, according to a report in TOI. MI reached Dharamsala from Chandigarh on Tuesday, but Pandya or Suryakumar Yadav did not travel.
Suryakumar recently was blessed with a baby girl. For MI's match vs RCB, Yadav had arrived late. It will be interesting to see when Yadav joins MI this time.
However, a report in Cricbuzz has claimed that the intense social media speculation surrounding Pandya is unfounded. "Sources insist there is nothing more to read into it, maintaining that it is a straightforward injury issue," said the report. Pandya has battled a lean patch in IPL 2026. In eight games, he scored 146 and scalped just four wickets.
Mumbai Indians have massively underperformed this season but can certainly spoil the opposition's campaign.
It remains to be seen if captain Hardik Pandya, who did not play the last two games due to a niggle, takes the field on Wednesday night.
Suryakumar Yadav, who has struggled for runs both at the international level and in franchise cricket over the past 12 months or so, would be looking to make the most of the remaining three outings in the IPL.
Ryan Rickelton and Rohit Sharma too would be expected to provide a flying start in the powerplay.
The seasoned pace duo of Trent Boult, who is not a sure starter, and Jasprit Bumrah would be looking to make the ball talk in the seam-friendly conditions.
Mumbai Indians
Hardik Pandya