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A big selection dilemma is looming for Mumbai Indians ahead of their IPL 2026 clash against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Raipur. With regular captain Hardik Pandya already ruled out of the match, stand-in skipper Suryakumar Yadav is also likely to miss out. If both the players will miss the upcoming clash, Mumbai Indians will have to look for someone who can lead the side in this high-voltage away clash.

Pandya missed the last home match against the Lucknow Super Giants and did not travel with the team to Raipur. The India all-rounder is understood to be struggling with a back spasm and has been ruled out of the next match. The selection crisis worsened when Suryakumar Yadav, who led Mumbai to a victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their previous match, reportedly left the camp citing personal reasons.

With both stars likely to miss the match against RCB, Mumbai Indians have the task of finding a new captain for a must-win game in their season.

The most obvious answer to this problem is Rohit Sharma. One of the most successful IPL captains of all time, Sharma has led the Mumbai Indians to five IPL titles, the most for any captain alongside MS Dhoni.

Leading the charge from 2013 to 2023, Rohit has captained the franchise in 158 games winning 87 and losing 67 of those. His win/loss ratio stood at 1.298 and his experience in leadership makes him an ideal choice. If Rohit agrees, not just MI camp, but the only fanbase of the franchise will be up on their toes for the exciting clash.

Also Read | Star India Batter Leaves MI Camp, Likely to Miss RCB Clash After Hardik Pandya Blow

Another captaincy option for Mumbai Indians is Tilak Varma. While there is a lot of inexperience when it comes to the leadership of the left-handed batter, he has leadership experience under his belt in domestic cricket. Tilak Varma has led Hyderabad in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, which automatically gives him a shot.

He has led Hyderabad in 14 matches, and the side has 9 wins against them and only lost 5, which gives a win/loss ratio of 1.8. Even though he is still very young, but they can look towards him as the next leader of the side in a tricky situation.

Quinton de Kock is another safe option. The South African wicketkeeper batter has been part of a winning side as captain in both international cricket and franchise T20 cricket, leading his side in 52 matches and winning 29 of them.

However, playing with de Kock as captain may see several changes in the XI and in combinations of overseas players. Rickelton is in fine form, making it unlikely for the Mumbai Indians to drop him from the playing XI. Hence, if de kock leads, Bosch/Boult and Bawa will have to sit out, and this seems highly unlikely.

Jasprit Bumrah has captaincy experience as well but seeing his form at this moment, it might not be the ideal situation to hand over the captaincy.

The options for the Mumbai Indians look slim at this point and a tough call is awaiting the team going into a must-win encounter against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.