Rohit Sharma in an aggressive mood at Wankhede. Photo: PTI.
Rohit Sharma’s classic innings and Ryan Rickelton’s dominant display helped the Mumbai Indians defeat the Kolkata Knight Riders by a stunning 6 wickets. In the end, young Angkrish Raghuvanshi and Captain Ajinkya Rahane’s heroic efforts were in vain.
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Rohit , Rickelton destroys KKR
In this high-scoring IPL 2026 encounter on Sunday night at the Wankhede Stadium, the five-time winners easily defeated the three-time champions, Kolkata Knight Riders, thanks to a superb innings from Mumbai Indians destroyer Rohit Sharma and a mature performance from Ryan Rickelton.
The Mumbai Indians started their innings carefully as they chased a huge goal of 221 runs, but the potent combination of Rohit and Rickelton quickly changed the course of the game. At first, Rohit was mostly concerned with evaluating the pitch after scoring just 12 runs off his first eight deliveries. The game’s flow abruptly changed when he forcefully smacked a short-pitched delivery from Vaibhav Arora deep into the stands. The Kolkata Knight Riders were forced to change their tactics as soon as Rohit moved slightly aside and lofted a delivery from Blessing Muzarabani over deep backward point for a boundary.
Rohit Sharma entertained Wankhede crowd with a sensational 78-run knock (AP Photo)
However, Ryan Rickelton wasted no time in settling in at the crease after being motivated by Rohit’s devastating batting. He hit two consecutive sixes off Vaibhav Arora, one over extra cover and the other over deep mid-wicket with great force. The Mumbai Indians had complete control of the Powerplay thanks to the full utilization of the ball’s pace by both batters.
Given that Varun Chakravarthy had dismissed Rohit eight times in prior meetings, it was very interesting to see how Rohit Sharma performed against Varun. But Rohit’s technique was outstanding; he lofted the ball over covers for a six, repeated the same shot on the very next delivery, and then nudged the ball towards square leg to secure a boundary. Mumbai reached 80 runs at the end of the powerplay (6 overs) without losing a single wicket owing to Rohit’s aggressive play, which saw him reach his half-century in just 23 balls, the fastest fifty of his IPL career and his 50th half-century in the competition.
Rickelton made sure that this trend continued. He attacked Sunil Narine, sending the ball over the boundary with a “slog-sweep” over deep mid-wicket. In a brief period of time, he then hammered the ball across the ropes twice more. Mumbai reached 100 runs in nine overs thanks to his half-century off just 24 balls, hence eliminating the need for the necessary run rate.
Rohit Sharma was dismissed for 78 runs off 38 balls, falling to a sharp running catch taken by Anukul Roy off the bowling of Vaibhav Arora. During this innings, Rohit Sharma struck six fours and six sixes. One of the standout moments of the innings was a lofted shot smashed over deep extra cover; the split-second pose he held after playing the shot sent the Wankhede crowd into a frenzy of jubilation.
He set the Mumbai Indians up for success by laying a strong foundation. Entering the field as a “Impact Substitute,” Suryakumar Yadav started his innings with a “scoop” shot over short fine leg. However, after scoring 16 runs off 8 balls, Kartik Tyagi removed him.
Due to Anukul’s agile and brilliant fielding, Rickelton was unable to complete his century. Run out just short of the crease, Ryan Rickelton departed after playing a magnificent innings of 81 runs off 43 balls.
Captain Rahane, Young Raghuvanshi Lift KKR
KKR’s opening combination, Ajinkya Rahane and Finn Allen, got off to a great start after losing the toss and being assigned to bat first. By the end of the period, KKR had amassed 78 runs without losing a wicket thanks to their use of the Powerplay.
Ajinkya Rahane stand-in skipper (AP Photo)
With a slower delivery, Shardul Thakur dismissed Allen, giving Kolkata the first blow. Allen scored 37 runs off of just 17 balls. The ₹25.20 crore acquisition, Cameron Green, got off to a strong start but was bowled for 18 runs by the same bowler, Shardul.
With a six over long-on off Trent Boult to start his innings, Ajinkya Rahane established the team’s run-scoring trajectory with his fluid batting. Hardik Pandya’s careless over, which let up 26 runs, gave KKR early momentum and increased their scoring pace.
By the end of the Powerplay, KKR’s score had reached 78 for the loss of one wicket. The momentum of the scoring continued, and within eight overs, KKR crossed the 100-run mark; at one stage, Rahane’s strike rate exceeded 200.
After a rather slow start, Angkrish Raghuvanshi made a spectacular comeback in the later part of his innings, slamming boundaries and sixes to record a scorching performance of 51 runs off just 29 balls before succumbing to Shardul. Additionally, he had a lucky break when Rohit dropped a catch of his right at the boundary line when batting on 21.
Rahane was dismissed by Shardul with a slower “cross-seam” delivery that was pitched slightly outside off-stump. The KKR captain failed to pace the ball properly and ended up making a catch in the covers area.