Massive blow to Mumbai Indians, star player ruled out of IPL 2025 right ahead of key clash against RR; 32-year-old named replacement

Mumbai Indians (MI) have suffered a big setback right ahead of their key IPL 2025 clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR). MI's bowler Vignesh Puthur has been ruled out of the remainder of the IPL 2025 season due to an injury. The young talent made his debut in the tournament earlier in March during MI's opening match against CSK. Puthur featured in a total of 5 matches and bagged an equal number of wickets before his season was prematurely ended.

According to an official press release, Puthur's unavailability is due to bone stress reactions in both of his shins. In response, Mumbai Indians have named Raghu Sharma as his replacement in the squad. The team has also stated that Vignesh will remain with the franchise to concentrate on his recovery and rehabilitation process under the guidance of the Mumbai Indians' medical and strength & conditioning team.

Raghu Sharma brings with him experience from domestic cricket, having played 11 first-class, 9 List A, and 3 T20 matches for Punjab and Pondicherry. Notably, he has achieved five 5-wicket hauls and three 10-wicket hauls in his first-class career. Sharma also had a successful outing in the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy while representing Punjab, where he picked up 14 wickets in 9 matches.