Jasprit Bumrah (Image credit: BCCI/IPL)
NEW DELHI: Since his debut for Mumbai Indians in 2013, star pacer Jasprit Bumrah has been an integral part of the franchise. Over the years he played 157 matches for MI and took 186 wickets. But during the IPL 2026 clash against Punjab Kings in Dharamsala on Thursday, Bumrah was seen in a different role – captaincy.Bumrah was handed the captaincy of Mumbai Indians in the absence of both regular captain Hardik Pandya and stand-in captain Suryakumar Yadav. And the pacer, in his first appearance as Mumbai Indians captain, produced a style to lead the side to a six-wicket victory over Punjab Kings.This was not the first time that Bumrah had captained the team. Earlier, he led India in both Tests and T20Is.His leadership experience includes leading India in two Tests during the 2024/25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia and the rescheduled Birmingham Test against England in 2022.Bumrah also captained India in two T20Is, with India winning both matches under his leadership.After Mumbai Indians – already from the IPL 2026 playoff race – secured victory, Bumrah was asked during the post-match presentation about his experience of leading the team.“Yes, the first match, as I said, I was the captain of the Test match. I was the captain of the T20Is. Now there is only ODI cricket left. But I don’t see it happening (laughs), jokes aside. Really happy. I had a good time, good weather, great ground. So I enjoyed it,” Bumrah said.A stunning half-century from Tilak Varma and an explosive innings from Ryan Rickelton led Mumbai Indians to a six-wicket victory.Bumrah said he was happy with the team’s performance on a surface that was a bit drier than expected, where it proved important to maintain consistent lengths.“Yeah, one-on-one (smiles). Both teams played good cricket and we pulled back really well. A little bit, but the wicket looked a bit drier in this game than the last one. Maybe it wasn’t as cold as the last game. Whatever we saw in the previous game and reading this game, keeping your length was key. That was the plan and thanks to all their bowlers they held on, Sharlak, Sharlak.” bowled both deserve equal praise Tilak kept his form Jacks also contributed,” said Bumrah after the match.
Which aspect of the game was crucial to Mumbai Indians’ victory?
Bumrah has so far endured a difficult IPL 2026 campaign with Mumbai Indians, taking just three wickets in 12 matches. He has gone wicketless in eight games and currently has an economy rate of 8.53.
