Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya, who missed the franchise\u2019s previous two Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 matches, was seen going through his work in the nets by himself ahead of Thursday\u2019s encounter against Punjab Kings in Dharamsala. Pandya has reportedly been dealing with back spasms, a condition that kept him out of MI\u2019s two most recent games. Although the team has not released a firm confirmation on whether he will be available for the Punjab contest, the all-rounder posted a training clip on his Instagram account, a move widely viewed as his signal that he is ready to return to action.<\/p>\n
MI\u2019s last outing came on May 10, when they met Royal Challengers Bengaluru and fell short in a last-ball finish, pushing them out of contention for the IPL 2026 playoffs race. Hardik did return to the group before that match, but selectors ultimately did not include him in the playing XI.<\/p>\n
With the focus now on the clash versus PBKS, signs of improvement were evident during Hardik\u2019s session. He was observed taking batting practice in the nets, suggesting his recovery is progressing ahead of the team\u2019s next assignment.<\/p>\n
Looking ahead to the remainder of Mumbai\u2019s IPL run, former India opener Sunil Gavaskar has encouraged the franchise to involve younger players in their final three matches. Gavaskar said, \u201cIn T20 cricket, ups and downs are part of the game. After the season finishes, that\u2019s the appropriate time to evaluate properly what went wrong. But at this stage, my feeling is that the senior players have already given everything they had. It could be the right moment to hand younger players an opportunity in the remaining fixtures. That will help the franchise gauge how these youngsters cope with pressure and whether they can live up to the trust placed in them.\u201d<\/p>\n
While the match against PBKS may not change MI\u2019s fate in the tournament, it carries significant weight for Shreyas Iyer\u2019s side. Punjab enter the contest under pressure after losing four straight matches and are in urgent need of a win. For Punjab to keep their hopes alive of finishing in the top two of the points table, victory over Mumbai is essential.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya, who missed the franchise\u2019s previous two Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 matches, was seen going through his work in the…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":9368,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Hardik Pandya Solo Nets Update Ahead of MI vs PBKS IPL","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Hardik Pandya trains solo in the nets as MI gear up for MI vs PBKS in Dharamsala. Fitness update amid back-spasm concerns and IPL pressure.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9370","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n