Captain Hardik Pandya said the Mumbai Indians must look closely at themselves following their loss to the Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Sunday in the IPL. Though they play hard, he sees how often they respond instead of taking charge, something slowing them down.
240 was never going to be easy after strong fifties by Salt, Kohli, and captain Patidar lifted the total. Chasing it down, Mumbai made 222 for 5, helped by Rutherford smashing 71 fast runs without getting out. Still short, they fell again, now three defeats deep in ten games. Eighth place is where they sit tonight.
“Need to reset and find momentum”, Hardik Pandya says
Out front, Pandya said the batters haven’t clicked when it matters same goes for the bowlers, especially up top. When runs leak right after the start, momentum slips before they can grab hold.
After a brief pause ahead of their upcoming game, Pandya said it is time to rethink how they play. Not quite happy with how things went so far, he suggested shifts in who bats when and which bowlers take the field together. The start of each innings hasn’t gone well, he pointed out, fixing that might just make the difference. Though nothing's decided yet, adjustments seem likely if they want better outcomes.
Also Read: Salt, Patidar shine as RCB pile misery on MI with third successive loss in IPL 2026
Even after the defeat, Sherfane Rutherford’s quickfire innings stood out. His performance caught Pandya’s eye, showing how his current rhythm opens up more options for squad balance and in-game decisions ahead.
Fresh off the field, RCB captain Rajat Patidar pointed to Kohli and Salt’s early fireworks, lighting up the game. Because of how things unfolded then, he felt right at home when facing quick bowlers later on. With the pitch playing along nicely, hitting through the line became second nature, keeping RCB steady from first ball to last.
