First time since 2012, Mumbai Indians begin IPL campaign with win as Rohit Sharma rolls back clock

When Mahela Jayawardene was asked about the 38-year-old not having played a T20 game in 10 months on Saturday, he pointed to the work Rohit had put in during that period.

“There’s a transformation in Rohit. I’ve seen the commitment on his part. And he’s been training skills as well for a longer period of time. That is what is in his control, what he can do. And I’m pretty satisfied with what I’ve seen in the practice games and in the nets. The hand speed, the technique, everything. And then on top of that, he has his experience as well, playing 18 years of IPL on top of that. So I have no issues with that,” he had said.

On Sunday, he offered a glimpse of that effort with a regal batting display.

The standout feature of his 78 off 38 balls was his off-side play. He welcomed one of KKR’s key bowlers, Varun Chakaravarthy, in the fourth over with a boundary through cover, followed by a sublime six over long-off, relying on timing rather than brute force.

In the next over, he unfurled an inside-out shot against Kartik Tyagi, lofting him over covers for another six. The balance in his strokeplay was striking – no slogging, just clean extension and controlled elevation sending the ball over the ropes.

He brought up his fifty in 23 balls -the fastest of his IPL career – to give MI an early ascendancy in the 221. The carnage continued even after he got to his landmark, as the KKR bowlers failed to find their lengths.

Rohit Sharma in action. (Photo by Sumeet Parmar / CREIMAS for IPL)

It took a spectacular catch by Anukul Roy to end Rohit’s stay in the crease in the 12th over. The left-arm spinner sprinted backwards in pursuit of a mistimed lofted shot towards mid-on off a full toss from Vaibhav Arora and dived full length and held onto the ball. The crowd had witnessed a batting exhibition. Rohit’s 78 laid the perfect foundation for MI to start their IPL 2026 campaign with a win.

MI had the option of pairing Rohit with either Ryan Rickelton or Quinton de Kock at the top, and their choice of Rickelton paid off. If Rohit dominated the off side, Rickelton owned the leg side.

The wicketkeeper-batter used the slog sweep effectively, smashing four of his eight sixes against Varun and Sunil Narine. The lack of turn at Wankhede allowed him to swing freely, complementing Rohit in building a strong platform for the chase.

Their 148-run opening stand off just 71 balls deflated KKR and proved decisive in helping MI pull off their highest successful chase in their IPL history and secure the two points.

Thakur shines on MI debut

In a pace armoury comprising Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah with Hardik Pandya for support, Shardul Thakur was perhaps not expected to emerge as the bowling star for MI on Sunday. Yet, on an evening when two of the bowling trio had a poor day with the ball and the spinners offered little resistance, it was the all-rounder who emerged as the shining light for the five-time champions.

The key to Thakur’s success on a placid Wankhede surface was his length and, even crucially, pace variation. While Boult was guilty of bowling fast and too full, Thakur read the conditions almost to perfection. He opted to take pace off the ball, mixed up his lengths and kept the batters second-guessing.

Finn Allen, who played an important role in KKR getting off to a flier in the powerplay, was deceived by a slower delivery, which he mistimed to long-on, walking back for 37 off 17 balls.

Shardul Thakur in action. (Photo by Vipin Pawar / CREIMAS for IPL)

Cameron Green, who was tasked with building on the 69-run foundation between Allen and Ajinkya Rahane, also fell to a short, slower delivery, bowled wide outside off-stump. It did not allow the right-hander to find the right connection, and he holed out at deep point in the ninth over.

At 144/2 after 13 overs, KKR looked set to get a massive score with a well-set Rahane in the middle. Thakur was brought back to try and make another inroad, and he delivered on his captain’s call, dismissing the right-hander to claim his third wicket of the evening.

On an evening where Pandya went for 39 runs in three overs, the spin duo of Allah Ghazanfar and Mayank Markhande went for a combined 67 runs in five overs and Bumrah went wicketless, it was Thakur’s spell of 3/39 in four overs which pegged KKR back and ensured that instead of finishing closer to 250, they ended up with 220 runs on the board.

Brief scores: KKR 220/4 in 20 ovs (Ajinkya Rahane 67, Angrish Raghuvanshi 51, Finn Allen 37, Rinku Singh 33; Shardul Thakur 3/39) lost to MI 224/4 (Ryan Rickelton 81, Rohit Sharma 78) in 19.1 ovs.