Mumbai Indians, who won their campaign opener in IPL 2026, have suffered three consecutive defeats. In their latest match against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, they went down by 18 runs at the Wankhede Stadium. Hardik Pandya, who has been an ordinary captain for MI, won the toss and invited RCB to bat first. The visiting team was unstoppable and posted 240/4.

Chasing 241, Mumbai’s downfall was scripted by Hardik’s brother Krunal Pandya, who was a part of the five-time champions. He not only dismissed dangerous Suryakumar Yadav (33 off 22) but also played a part in fielding placements and giving inputs to his skipper, Rajat Patidar.

Mumbai suffered a major setback when Rohit Sharma left the field after posting just 19 runs. The veteran injured his hamstring.

Suyash Sharma struck twice in one over, removing Ryan Rickelton (37 off 22) and Tilak Varma (1 off 3). Hardik Pandya tried to accelerate, but Jacob Duffy dismissed him.

The right-handed batter amassed 40 runs off 22 balls, laced with 6 fours and 1 six.

Sherfane Rutherford tried his best but he couldn’t match the asking run rate. He amassed an unbeaten 71 runs off 31 balls, including 9 sixes and 1 four. Mumbai were restricted to 222/5 in 20 overs.

Earlier, Bengaluru batters knew that they had to cross the 230-run mark to put the home franchise under pressure, and they came out with an intent.

Phil Salt, who hasn’t been able to score consistently, finally made the difference. He faced 36 deliveries to post 78 runs, including 6 fours and 6 sixes.

He added 120 runs in 10.5 overs for the first wicket with Virat Kohli, who accumulated 50 runs in 38 deliveries. The veteran struck 5 fours and 1 maximum. The real push came from skipper Rajat Patidar, who contributed 53 runs in just 20 balls, packed with 5 sixes and 4 boundaries.

Tim David was again brilliant with the bat, scoring an unbeaten 34 off 16. The right-handed batter hit 3 maximums and 2 fours as RCB reached 240/4.

For Mumbai, Shardul Thakur, Trent Boult and Mitchell Santner took one wicket each.