Mumbai Indians’ (MI) young all-rounder Atharva Ankolekar has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. As replacement, MI have roped in Punjab's Krish Bhagat for the remainder of the season at his base price of Rs 30 lakh.
Bhagat is yet to make his debut in domestic T20s. He is a pace-bowling all-rounder who has been part of MI trials for the past two years.
The youngster has played seven first-class and nine List A games. In red-ball cricket, he has seven wickets at an average of 36. He has scored 145 runs from 10 innings at an average of 18.12. In List A format, he has nine wickets at an average of 29.55. He has managed to score 52 runs from three List A innings, including a half-century against Uttarakhand in Vijay Hazare Trophy 2025-26.
Bhagat becomes official part of MI squad ahead of their clash against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at Wankhede Stadium on April 16.
Mumbai Indians' updated full squad for IPL 2026
Hardik Pandya (c), Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Robin Minz, Sherfane Rutherford, Ryan Rickelton, Quinton De Kock, Danish Malewar, N. Tilak Varma, Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Raj Angad Bawa, Mayank Rawat, Corbin Bosch, Will Jacks, Shardul Thakur, Trent Boult, Mayank Markande, Deepak Chahar, Ashwani Kumar, Raghu Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Mohammad Izhar, Allah Ghazanfar, Krish Bhagat.
Will Rohit Sharma play vs PBKS?
Opener Rohit Sharma may miss the clash against PBKS after suffering a hamstring injury in the encounter against Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). In the pre-match press conference, Naman Dhir was uncertain about Rohit's availability for the home game.
However, Rohit turned up for a net session, facing throwdowns on the eve of the match. If he plays, he is likely to play as an impact player. If he misses out, MI may include either Quinton de Kock, Will Jacks or uncapped Danish Malewar in the side. Ryan Rickelton has been picked ahead of De Kock so far whereas Jacks didn't join the camp due to personal reasons.