29 April,2026 08:11 PM IST | Mumbai | mid-day online correspondent
Will Jacks (Pic: AFP)
The Mumbai Indians got off to a flying start, racing to 78 for no loss at the end of the powerplay against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
MI's new opening pair of Will Jacks and Ryan Rickelton stitched together a 50-run partnership in just 25 balls, giving the hosts a perfect start. Jacks is playing his first match of the season after arriving late for the IPL.
Jacks scored 38 off 18 balls, while Rickelton raced to 37 off 18 deliveries, as the MI duo dominated the SRH bowlers. For SRH, Eshan Malinga was the most economical, conceding just six runs in his only over.
Earlier, after winning the toss, Hardik Pandya elected to bat first. The MI captain confirmed that Rohit Sharma remains sidelined due to a hamstring injury.
"We will bat first. Looks like a good pitch; it's breezy and a bit cold. I don't think dew will be a factor. It was important for us to reset and not get too complicated. We had a couple of good evenings and a couple of net sessions. Now we're ready for the game. Mitchell was unfortunate, as was Quinny today; he has a wrist injury. There are a couple of changes: Rickelton comes in, and Minz is in. Rohit will need a couple more games; he's trying, but it's not up to the mark. I want to play the best cricket I know as well," Pandya said.
Meanwhile, SRH skipper Pat Cummins said he would have preferred to bowl first regardless. He added that the team has made one change, with Harsh Dubey replacing Shivang.
"It looks like there might be a little bit of tackiness in the wicket, so happy to bowl first. I think you've just got to reset your expectations every game. It is pretty high-scoring normally, so just try to execute skills and not overthink it," Cummins said.
MI are currently ninth in the table with just four points, while SRH are fourth with 10 points on the board.
Mumbai Indians (Playing XI): Ryan Rickelton(w), Will Jacks, Naman Dhir, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya(c), Robin Minz, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, AM Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar
Sunrisers Hyderabad (Playing XI): Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Salil Arora(w), Nitish Kumar Reddy, Pat Cummins(c), Harsh Dubey, Sakib Hussain, Praful Hinge, Eshan Malinga
