IPL 2026: Jasprit Bumrah available for Mumbai Indians' 1st game, confirms head coach
IPL 2026: Jasprit Bumrah had reported to BCCI COE ahead of season (Source: IG/Jaspritb1)
Published - 28 Mar 2026, 06:22 PM• Read time - 2 mins
Fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah will be playing the first match for Mumbai Indians (MI) in the Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026), confirmed head coach Mahela Jayawardene. Mumbai will begin their campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Sunday, March 29, at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Ahead of the fixture, there were concerns around Bumrah’s availability for the opening fixture as he had earlier reported to the BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) Centre of Excellence (CoE) in Bengaluru ahead of the upcoming season.
However, Jayawardene has confirmed that Bumrah has joined the Mumbai Indians (MI) squad and is available for their opening match. Earlier, Bumrah had missed MI's training session on Friday but was present on Saturday to prepare for the game against KKR.
“So we just have to manage that. And Jassi is back with the squad. He’s available to play," said Jayawardene in the pre-match press conference.
Bumrah recently played a pivotal role in India’s T20 World Cup 2026 triumph, finishing as the joint-highest wicket-taker of the tournament with 14 wickets from eight innings at an average of 12.42 and an economy of 6.21.
Santner, Jacks unavailable for opening game
Meanwhile, MI will be without New Zealand left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner and England allrounder Will Jacks for their opening game. Jayawardene confirmed that their absence was due to personal reasons.
"Mitch and Jacksy both asked for a slightly extended time for personal reasons. And we were quite happy to go with that. But they'll join the team pretty soon. I'm not sure [when they will join], but pretty soon. It's just that we don't want to divulge what is not fair for either party. But being honest, we feel that it's fine with us with who we have got,” he added.
Heading into their opening game, MI will aim to end their 14-year-long first match losing streak in IPL, as they last won their first game of a season in 2012 against Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
