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Jasprit Bumrah made his IPL captaincy debut in the match between Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians. Notably, he became the third skipper to lead the team in the 2026 season.
Jasprit Bumrah in action(PTI)Jasprit Bumrah delivered both leadership and laughter on his maiden outing as Mumbai Indians captain in IPL 2026. In the match against the Punjab Kings on Thursday (May 14), the star pacer won the toss and opted to bowl first. He opened up with a heartfelt one-liner that perfectly captured his whirlwind journey from young fast bowler to India’s Test skipper and now MI leader.
Jasprit Bumrah embraces new challenge with a smile
At the toss, Jasprit Bumrah kept it real and relaxed. He explained, “We have decided to bowl first. We saw the last game and felt maybe with the cold weather coming down the wicket will settle down."
Talking about his IPL captaincy debut, Bumrah smiled added, "It feels good. I came here as a 19-year-old. I didn't think that I will be a Test captain before becoming MI captain. I like responsibility, this is a new challenge and I will look to have fun."
"We have three games left, and we want to enjoy and maybe ruffle a few teams. Surya is not here for personal reasons, and Allah is not there as well,” he explained.
The 32-year-old looked completely at ease in the new role. His honest admission about never imagining he would lead India in Tests before captaining the Mumbai Indians struck a chord with fans.
Mumbai Indians achieve a unique feat with Jasprit Bumrah's captaincy debut
The Mumbai Indians have scripted a rare chapter in IPL history this season. The franchise became the first team ever to be led by three Indian captains in the same edition: Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav, and now Jasprit Bumrah.
Other sides that have used three captains in one IPL season include:
MI in 2008 (Harbhajan Singh, Shaun Pollock, Sachin Tendulkar)
PWI in 2013 (Dwayne Bravo, Ross Taylor, Aaron Finch)
SRH in 2021 (David Warner, Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey)
PBKS in 2024 (Shikhar Dhawan, Sam Curran, Jitesh Sharma)
Mumbai Indians Playing XI vs Punjab Kings
Ryan Rickelton (w), Naman Dhir, Tilak Varma, Sherfane Rutherford, Will Jacks, Raj Bawa, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Jasprit Bumrah (c), Raghu Sharma
MI Impact Subs: Rohit Sharma, Mayank Rawat, Robin Minz, Krish Bhagat, Trent Boult
(More to follow)
About the Author
Aachal Maniyar
Aachal Maniyar is a Senior Content Producer at LiveMint, where she covers US sports with a focus on major leagues, marquee events, and athlete-driven stories, while also reporting extensively on cricket and global sports. With over five years of first-hand journalism experience, she combines sharp editorial judgment with real-time sports storytelling across platforms. <br><br> Her reporting journey spans leading newsrooms including Thomson Reuters, India TV, BTVI, ET NOW, and CNBC TV18, where she has worked across breaking news, live match coverage, feature writing, interviews, video scripting, and anchoring. This multi-platform exposure has shaped her ability to deliver context-rich sports and business journalism tailored for both television and digital audiences. <br><br> Aachal has conducted and produced exclusive interviews with athletes and public figures such as India cricketer Dhruv Jurel, Indian women’s hockey captain Savita Punia, and industrialist Ratan Tata, along with several emerging and established sports personalities. Her body of work includes in-depth explainers, athlete profiles, emotionally resonant fan narratives, and data-backed match analysis across cricket, Olympic sports, and international competitions. <br><br> She holds a Master’s degree in Journalism from Symbiosis Institute of Media and Communication, Pune, and believes in reporting that is grounded in accuracy, clarity, and credibility. Her philosophy is simple: sports journalism should go beyond scores and statistics, capturing the human stories, pressure moments, and decisions that shape the game and the people who play it.

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