Former India spinner Ravichandran Ashwin may have retired from international cricket and the Indian Premier League, but he remains closely associated with the game through commentary and his growing presence as a digital analyst. From pre-match breakdowns to post-match reviews on his YouTube channel, Ashwin continues to offer insights that often become part of the conversation around key performances.However, his absence in analyzing the Lucknow Super Giants vs Mumbai Indians clash in IPL 2026 did not go unnoticed. The game itself was dominated by a vintage knock from Rohit Sharma, who returned from injury in style to smash 84 off 44 balls to lead the Mumbai men in a high-scoring encounter.
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Akeal Hosein emphasizes discipline over goalsFans were quick to point out that Ashwin didn’t talk about Rohit’s innings, which raised a slight question during one of his appearances. The host jokingly asked if there was any problem between them.“Fans say you came and analyzed RCB, Virat Kohli’s game, but Rohit Sharma played such a good knock after so long. You ignored him. Kuch hua hai kya aapka Rohit se? (something happened between you and Rohit),” Ashwin asked.Ashwin responded with humor and said, “Haan thoda lafda ho gaya na (Yes, I had a bit of a fight).He quickly clarified the situation, dismissed any speculation and explained the real reason why he was absent from the game.“You say whatever. If I had a fight with someone, I wouldn’t keep it to myself. Please understand me and keep me calm too. I commented for two consecutive days and then I traveled, came home and slept at night,” he explained.Despite leaving out the opening analysis, Ashwin was highly complimentary of Rohit’s innings.“Rohit Sharma played a very good knock. The way he hit Avesh Khan for a six over extra cover, he looped it and followed it 1000 times. What a shot. He also hit Manimaran Siddharth for a six over the bowler. But LSG and MI have no stage in this IPL. Mumbai have nothing to prove. But they only have problems against L, they will leave it. let’s see if they do better from there,” he said.On the field, Rohit and Ryan Rickelton put up a dominant display for Mumbai Indians. The duo combined for 143 runs for the opening stand, with Rickelton blasting 83 from just 32 balls as MI chased down Lucknow’s formidable 228/5 in 18.4 overs to secure a six-wicket win.However, the victory does not change the overall picture of both sides. Mumbai Indians now have three wins from 10 matches and have six points, while Lucknow Super Giants remain at the bottom with four points from nine matches. With the playoff race tightening, both teams are now almost out of contention in IPL 2026.
