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IPL 2026: Mumbai Indians set for 'difficult calls'
17 Apr 2026

Mumbai Indians (MI) captain Hardik Pandya hinted at possible changes in the team after their fourth successive defeat in IPL 2026.

The five-time champions lost to Punjab Kings at home on Thursday night.

In the post-match interview, Hardik highlighted the need to go "back to the drawing board."

As suggested by him, the five-time champions could be making some "difficult calls" ahead of their next match against Gujarat Titans on April 20.

Ownership has to be taken: Hardik
Performance review

Hardik's comments have led to speculation about the possible changes he might be considering, especially regarding "individuals" and "ownership."

The MI skipper said, "We really need to see, do we need to make some difficult calls or do we need to keep continuing and hope that we'll turn things around."

He further added, "These are some hard questions which eventually we need to answer and yeah, ownership has to be taken."

MI's fourth defeat in a row
Match

PBKS demolished MI in Match 24 of IPL 2026 after chasing down 196.

Quinton de Kock scored a stunning century (112*) for MI, leading the team to a challenging total of 195/6 in 20 overs at Wankhede Stadium.

In response, blazing knocks from Prabhsimran Singh (80*) and Shreyas Iyer (66) helped PBKS win in just 16.3 overs.

Previously, MI won their first IPL season opener after over a decade. However, they haven't found a win thereafter.

Jayawardene acknowledges team's struggles
League position

With just one win from five matches, the five-time champions are currently ninth in the league table, just above a winless Kolkata Knight Riders.

MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene acknowledged the team's struggles after the game.

He said, "We're finding some spark in certain areas, but on the other side, we're lacking it, especially with the ball."

Jayawardene stressed that it's a collective responsibility and not just on Pandya to improve their performance.

A look at key takeaways
Takeaways

MI haven't had a concerted effort in IPL 2026 so far.

While Rohit Sharma is out injured, the inconsistent form of star players Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, and Hardik himself has hurt the side.

In another turn of events, Jasprit Bumrah has gone wicketless in each of the five games so far. The rest of their bowling line-up looks flat.