Mumbai Indians (MI) head coach Mahela Jayawardene, in his recent speech, announced that Rohit Sharma, who was mostly used as an impact player last season, may be seen a bit more on the field this time.
India’s most experienced T20I batsman, Rohit Sharma, no longer plays in the tricolor blue jersey; However, he still represents his IPL franchise, Mumbai Indians. Rohit was one of MI’s leading run-scorers last season and helped them progress to the second qualifier.
However, last season Rohit was primarily seen as an impact player. Mumbai Indians bought Rohit to open the batting with Ryan Rickelton. The Indian legend was mainly seen off the field, as Hardik Pandya has been captaining the team for the last two seasons.
I want to keep him on the field as much as possible- Mahela Jayawardene said about Rohit Sharma’s role in 2026
MI fans did not take very well to Hardik Pandya being made the captain of the team in place of Rohit Sharma. After Hardik returns to MI in 2024, the Wankhede crowd criticized their own team captain on several occasions.
However, Pandya maintained his composure and showed some surprising resilience as a cricketer and led MI to the Qualifiers in his second season as captain. This marks Mumbai Indians’ first playoff qualification since 2020.
Rohit Sharma will be seen on the field and not as an influential player. pic.twitter.com/LLAFD9SMyQ
– MI Fans Army (@MIFansArmy) 17 March 2026
In a chat show with MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene, he was asked whether former MI captain Rohit Sharma would be seen in the playing eleven this time instead of being brought in only as an impact player.
The head coach joked, “But he’s still playing.”
He then added, “I think that certainly, the way we managed him last season, he had some fitness concerns and we needed to manage that. The thing is, he is still making a big impact on the team, whether he is on the field or not. But this year, of course, I want to keep him on the field as much as possible.”
Most of our players are all-rounders and captains need that option – Mahela Jayawardene
The MI head coach also revealed that most of his players are cricketers who play as all-rounders and also have a role to play with the ball. The captain needed his options during that innings, and it was Rohit Sharma who volunteered to be used as an impact player in such conditions.
“But we are rotating that impact player based on the fact that other players have to be on the field all the time. Because if you look at it, most of our players are all-rounders who bowl, and the captain needs those options on the field, which I have to look at and discuss.
“Now Tilak is also bowling, so he has put his hand up, and I can’t take him out. Now, the two guys who are not bowling are Rohit and Surya. Do you agree with Surya being out of the playing XI and coming in as an impact player?” The coach turned towards the fans.
However, he assured that he will try to do his best, and the rest remains to be seen what actually happens in the season.
MI’s probable playing 12 for IPL 2026
Mumbai Indians probably have the best number of Indian superstars than any other team in the IPL. They have Rohit Sharma along with captain Hardik Pandya. Indian T20I captain Suryakumar Yadav, top fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah and youngster Tilak Verma are all in the same team.
However, now they have a lot of foreign stars playing their roles. They have two in-form South African wicketkeeper batsmen in Quinton de Kock and Ryan Rickelton. He also selected another in-form West Indies batsman, Sherfane Rutherford, to strengthen the lower-order batting.
Also read: Former CSK batsman hints at the end of Rishabh Pant’s white ball career