Mumbai Indians (MI) and their captain Hardik Pandya are going through a bad phase in IPL 2026. After another defeat to Punjab Kings at the Wankhede, the pressure is clearly mounting, and now Irfan Pathan has also pointed to some serious concerns.
The five-time IPL champions have been struggling badly this season, as they have managed to win only one of their five matches so far. Recently, Mumbai Indians suffered a crushing defeat by seven wickets against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at their home ground Wankhede Stadium.
Irfan Pathan expressed great concern over Hardik Pandya’s form and leadership!
Hardik once again could not make an impact. The MI skipper scored only 14 runs off 12 balls and looked out of rhythm, conceding 39 runs without taking any wicket in three overs. His overall figures this season are also not good, with only 81 runs in four innings.
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He has taken only two wickets this season, and his economy rate is above 11. Reacting to the MI captain’s struggles, Irfan Pathan feels that Hardik is not looking comfortable when the pressure increases, and his form is not matching his level, which is causing huge losses for Mumbai Indians.
“It’s also about managing things better. Hardik’s batting average since 2024 is in the early 20s. We expect better from him. He needs to do better in the power play in bowling as well. Things got easier in this match as Allah Ghazanfar took wickets. But he looks quite worried when the pressure is on,” Irfan Pathan said in a video posted on his YouTube channel.
Irfan Pathan urges Mumbai Indians to play a ‘proper wicket-taking bowler’ in IPL 2026
The big issue for Mumbai Indians in the current tournament is their bowling combination. Pathan has told that both Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar are giving too many runs and this is making the situation worse for the franchise and then Jasprit Bumrah is not able to take wickets.
He said, “Out of the five bowlers, Shardul Thakur and Hardik Pandya are all-rounders and Deepak Chahar is not taking wickets. So, they have only two bowlers left. How do you take wickets with only two bowlers? They need to improve their bowling unit and play proper wicket-taking bowlers.”
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Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur playing together is a problem for MI: Irfan Pathan
The former Indian all-rounder has told that both Shardul and Chahar are similar bowlers and playing them together is not working. Chahar has been very expensive in the powerplay, which puts the team on the backfoot early on.
He believes Mumbai Indians may need to make some drastic changes, such as dropping a bowler and bringing in a proper wicket-taker, to make a comeback in the tournament, where they have already slipped to ninth in the points table with just two points.
Pathan said, “Shardul Thakur and Deepak Chahar bowl at a similar pace. Playing both together is a problem. Deepak Chahar has not been able to take wickets with the new ball and he has also given 20-21 runs in the first over. When you give so many runs in the first over, other bowlers have to play catch-up and be defensive.”