IPL 2026: Krunal Pandya turned emotional after guiding Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a thrilling two-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in Match 54 of Indian Premier League 2026 at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Raipur on Sunday, May 10, 2026. The left-handed all-rounder played a match-winning knock of 73 under pressure as RCB completed a season double over Mumbai Indians and climbed to the top of the points table. The defeat also confirmed MI’s elimination from the playoff race. Krunal, who represented Mumbai Indians for several seasons and won three IPL titles with the franchise, appeared emotional while speaking about former teammate Kieron Pollard and younger brother Hardik Pandya after the match.
“Kieron is my big brother. I had my best six years in MI. I remember with the Pandya brothers and Kieron Pollard were the engine room. We won a lot of games with bat, ball and fielding. I still remember in 2021 when we were playing our last game, we hold three of us, we hold each other's hand and we felt like, okay this is the last time we'll be able to play together and yeah, it was obviously an emotional moment again, but I love Kieron Pollard. I mean, he's a terrific human being, goat of this format, won so many trophies, so many games. And yeah, as they say, you're right, Kieron always used to tell me that you can't keep a good man down,” Krunal said after the match.
The left-handed batter also opened up about the physical struggle he endured during the innings. “I was cramping a lot. It started from the calf, went to the glutes and then my back. It was something new for me. What matters is those two points. I love batting in tough situations and I always prepare for moments like this,” he said.
Krunal also praised veteran pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar for his crucial contribution late in the chase. “The shot Bhuvi played was the shot of the match. It was a wicket where you had to play proper cricketing shots and grind hard,” he added.
Earlier, Mumbai Indians struggled after being asked to bat first and slipped to 28/3 inside the powerplay. However, Tilak Varma scored 57 off 42 balls, while Naman Dhir contributed 47 to help MI post 165/7 in 20 overs.
Bhuvneshwar starred with the ball for RCB, returning figures of 4/23.
In reply, Bengaluru also suffered early setbacks, losing three wickets for 39 runs. Krunal then stitched a crucial partnership with Jacob Bethell to steady the innings before taking the game deep. RCB eventually sealed victory off the final ball to strengthen their playoff hopes.