Will Rohit Sharma Play Against Punjab Kings? Latest Injury Update

Five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) camp is currently going through a tense situation as their star opener, Rohit Sharma's participation in the next match against Punjab Kings is under a huge doubt. The 38-year-old veteran batter was seen under immense pain due to a hamstring injury during the last match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Sunday.

Although Rohit looked in good touch and scored 19 runs off 13 balls, his injury made him retire hurt in the second last over of the powerplay. There were expectations that he might return after a few overs, but that didn't happen and Mumbai Indians lost the match by 18 runs at their home ground.

Will Rohit Sharma Play Against Punjab Kings?

As per the latest Rohit Sharma injury update, he is currently undergoing through medical scans. The MI team management is yet to give any update on his availability against Punjab Kings, but during the post-match press conference after the RCB match, Sherfane Rutherford confirmed that the issue was hamstring-related.

According to RevSportz, Rohit had a scan at the HL Reliance Hospital in Mumbai and was assisted by the team physio Nitin Patel. The reports are likely to arrive soon. Adding to it , he will have some fitness drills during MI's training session and his participation on the next match against Punjab Kings will be decided on this basis.

While MI being in 8th spot in the IPL points table, losing such an experienced player will be a big blow. They will hope for Rohit to be fit ahead of the more important matches coming up.

Who Can Replace Rohit Sharma If He Does Not Play Against PBKS?

Replacing a player like Rohit Sharma, who stands second on the list of most runs in IPL, won't be easy. But if he is ruled out from the MI vs PBKS IPL 2026 match, the team management can look towards Will Jacks as the primary candidate to fill the vacancy. Jacks, who is expected to join the squad imminently following a brief personal leave, brings an explosive batting style to this line-up.

Jacks is one of the best all-rounders in the world and has been in good form recently. The off-spinning all-rounder had a terrific ICC T20 World Cup, where he won a record four Player of the Match awards.
This reshuffle in the overseas department would likely have a ripple effect, as Mitchell Santner is the most probable candidate to be benched. Despite his reliability, the need to fit in Jacks or a more aggressive top-order option could see Santner making way to maintain the four-overseas-player limit, forcing the team to rely on its domestic spin options for the middle overs.