The five-time champions have roped in Krish Bhagat as a replacement for injured Atharva Ankolekar for the rest of the IPL 2026 season.

The right-arm pacer has played seven first-class games and nine List A games for Punjab. The 21-year-old has also registered a half-century in List A cricket and will be joining the side on a base price of INR 30 lakhs.

“Mumbai Indians (MI) have signed Krish Bhagat as a replacement for Atharva Ankolekar, who has been ruled out of the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 due to injury. Bhagat, 21, has played seven first-class matches and nine List A matches for Punjab. He is a right-arm medium pacer and has also registered a half-century in List A cricket,” said an IPL statement.

Krish Bhagat was part of Mumbai Indians trials for past two years, having played for Reliance Team in DY Patil T20 Cup in 2026.

Meanwhile, Ankolekar has been part of the India’s U19 World Cup team in 2020 and was also the player of the match in the final of the ACC U19 Asia Cup against Bangladesh in 2019.

Mumbai Indians had a positive start with a win against Kolkata Knight Riders, but suffered three back-to-back defeats against Delhi Capitals, Rajasthan Royals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

With the early setbacks they sinked to the ninth position of the IPL 2026 points table and has been struggling with performance.

Additionally, Rohit Sharma’s injury remains concern as he walked off the field due to hamstring injury in MI’s clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

As per the Mumbai Indians 2026 schedule, their next game will be against Punjab Kings on April 16 at Wankhede Stadium.