Mumbai Indians The captain Hardik Pandya Fingers crossed at his bowling unit after a 27-run defeat by Rajasthan Royals In a rain-shortened 11-over one-sided IPL 2026 clash at the ACA Stadium.Opting to bowl first, Mumbai failed to make an opening as Rajasthan’s openers, Yeshsavi Jaiswal And teenage sensation Vibhu Suryavanshi carried out a brutal attack. The duo scored 56 runs in just 3.2 overs of the powerplay to give RR a brilliant start. Jaiswal remained unbeaten on 77 off 32 balls, while Suryavanshi hit 39 off 14, helping Rajasthan to a formidable 150/3 in 11 overs.Chasing 151, Mumbai’s batting line-up collapsed under the pressure. Reduced to 46/5 early on, they never recovered and ended on 123/9, 27 runs short.Hardik Pandya blamed the bowling unitSpeaking after the match, Pandya admitted that the bowlers failed to execute their plans. He emphasized that the unit conceded too many boundaries in the opening overs, which allowed RR to take control of the game.“We didn’t deliver what we should have. They played well. The bowlers need to take responsibility. As a bowling group, we were not on target. They also played well,” Pandya said in the post-match presentation.Pandya said he would not blame his batsmen for not scoring enough runs in the powerplay. “I won’t blame the batting. Definitely the bowling unit, which has to take responsibility. It’s always about those good balls. If we had played, we would have been in the game. Their openers threw us off our game, and we were playing catch-up,” he added.Asked about RR’s teenage batting sensation, Vibhu Suryavanshi, Pandya said, “It’s quite interesting to see a 17- or 16-year-old boy (15-year-old) play like that. His batting style is amazing, the fearlessness he has. Best wishes for his future.”Pandya refused to be disappointed with the result and said he would learn from his mistakes. He said learn from mistakes, tomorrow will be morning, sun will rise, prepare well for next match.Mumbai Indians next matchMumbai Indians will next face Royal Challengers Bengaluru at their home ground Wankhede Stadium. While Mumbai have historically dominated the venue, registering eight wins over Bengaluru, RCB come into the clash with confidence as the defending champions and have won four of their last six encounters against MI.
