IPL 2026 | MI vs PBKS highlights: Arshdeep’s milestone, Iyer defies gravity, Rohit Sharma misses out

It didn’t quite play out as expected for the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on Thursday. Hardik Pandya & Co. succumbed to a dominating batting display by the yet unbeaten Punjab Kings, who clinched a seven-wicket win, chasing a 196-run target without much of a bother.

For Punjab, the batters did stand out, namely Prabhsimran Singh and skipper Shreyas Iyer, but there is much more to the story than you think.

Arshdeep Singh scripts history with 100 IPL wickets for PBKS

Arshdeep became the first-ever bowler for Punjab Kings to claim 100 wickets in the Indian Premier League.vThe left-arm pacer delivered an impactful spell of 3/22 in four overs, dismissing key batters Ryan Rickelton, Suryakumar Yadav and Sherfane Rutherford.

Since making his debut in 2019, Arshdeep has now taken 102 wickets in 87 matches for PBKS at an average of 26.87, including two four-wicket hauls and a five-wicket haul, with best figures of 5/32. He has surpassed former PBKS spinner Piyush Chawla, who picked up 84 wickets for the franchise.

This season, Arshdeep has taken five wickets in five matches at an average of 34.20 and an economy rate of 9.50. He also became the fifth left-arm pacer to reach 100 IPL wickets, joining elite names like Trent Boult, Jaydev Unadkat, Ashish Nehra and Zaheer Khan.

Shreyas Iyer’s gravity-defying effort lights up Wankhede

Shreyas Iyer’s sensational boundary-line relay catch to dismiss Hardik Pandya turned heads and shifted momentum dramatically during the contest.

Facing Marco Jansen in the 18th over, Pandya mistimed a shot that seemed destined to clear the ropes. Iyer sprinted across, plucked the ball mid-air, and released it just before crossing the boundary rope.

Bartlett completed the relay catch, sealing what is already being touted as a ‘Catch of the Tournament’ contender. The effort left players in the Mumbai Indians dugout visibly stunned.

Rohit Sharma misses out; Pandya offers injury update

Mumbai Indians were without Rohit Sharma, who continues to recover from a hamstring injury sustained in the previous match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

At the toss, skipper Hardik Pandya indicated that Rohit could be sidelined for a longer period.

"We would have loved to bowl first as well, but yeah, good toss to lose. Time to play some good cricket. So, yes, I think we played decent cricket. It's just that in a couple of overs, we have not been able to capitalize and we have been, kind of losing those big moments. And we're just gonna speak about that and just make sure that in this game, we come out there and make sure that those little battles, we keep winning it. Yes, I think last game, we went for four 20+ overs. I think any point of time in T20 cricket, that's not acceptable. So, as a group, we are aware, as a group, we are aware that what it requires us to kind of contain that, those overs and not let them slide away and have them big overs. And yeah, we have spoken about it. We have kind of planned about it. Let's see how it goes today," Pandya said.

Mitchell Santner also missed out due to illness, while Quinton de Kock returned to the side and Mayank Rawat made his debut.

De Kock marked his return to MI in emphatic fashion, smashing a blistering century in IPL 2026 after being drafted in as a replacement for Rohit Sharma.

Opening the innings, De Kock wasted little time in asserting dominance, racing to his third IPL hundred in just 53 balls. His innings was laced with seven fours and seven sixes, combining power with precision.

A key member of Mumbai Indians’ title-winning squads in the past, this knock marked De Kock’s first appearance for the franchise since his return, underlining both his experience and match-winning pedigree.

(With inputs from ANI)