IPL 2026 | After 14 years, Mumbai Indians’ Tilak Varma writes a rare ‘unwanted’ IPL record

Tilak Varma (Image credit: BCCI/IPL) NEW DELHI: Mumbai Indians went into the clash against Kolkata Knight Riders with no pressure to qualify after already being eliminated from the play-off race of IPL 2026. With nothing to lose, the five-time champions were expected to play aggressive cricket at the Eden Gardens. Instead, their batting unit crumbled under pressure as not a single batsman managed to clear the 35-run mark.After being asked to bat first, MI suffered an early collapse. Ryan Rickelton departed for 6, Naman Dhir fell for a duck while Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav managed just 15 runs each. With wickets falling quickly, the onus fell on Tilak Varma to hold the innings together and revive Mumbai’s hopes of a competitive total. However, the left-hander lasted a rare day off, climbing to 20 from 32 deliveries at a rate of just 62.50.In the process, Tilak registered an unwanted IPL record that remained untouched for 14 years. The last batsman to face 30 or more deliveries in an IPL innings and score at a lower strike rate was Michael Hussey, who made 19 off 32 balls at a strike rate of 59.37 for Chennai Super Kings against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur in May 2012.Tilak, despite this disappointing outing, has enjoyed a strong 2026 IPL season overall. In 13 matches so far, he has scored 356 runs at an average of 32.36 and a strike rate of 148.95, including one century and two fifties.But against KKR, the attacking batsman known for changing games on his own never found the power.KKR bowlers maintained relentless pressure throughout the innings. Sunil Narine, Cameron Green and Saurabh Dubey led the charge with disciplined spells to restrict MI to 147/8.Green removed Rickelton early while Dubey struck twice in quick succession to dismiss Rohit and Suryakumar. Rohit hit two sixes during his 15-ball stay, while Suryakumar’s brief cameo of 15-ball six ended when he was bowled by Dubey.Tilak and skipper Hardik Pandya tried to restore the 43-run partnership, but neither batsman could relax on a surface that helped the bowlers. Tilak was eventually caught by Anukul Roy off Kartik Tyagi, while Hardik’s scrappy 27 off 26 balls ended when he was bowled by Narine.Will Jacks added a quick 14 before being run out by sharp efforts from Rinku Singh and Varun Chakravarthy.The only late success came from Corbin Bosch who remained unbeaten on 32 off 18 balls with three boundaries and two sixes. Deepak Chahar also chipped in with 10 off seven deliveries to help MI recover slightly at the end.Among the bowlers, Dubey and Green claimed two wickets each while Tyagi also picked up a brace. Narine again proved decisive with a measly spell of 1/13 in four overs.