Watch: IPL 2026: Sandeep Sharma dismisses Rohit Sharma for 5 during RR vs MI clash

When rain was falling from the start of the evening at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 clash between the Rajasthan Royals and the Mumbai Indians, the fear was of not getting a game. But the grounds men were excellent once the rain started.

In the 11-over side clash, as expected, the MI captain, Hardik Pandya, won the toss and decided to bowl first on a surface that was under the covers for a long time. The search was for lots of swing and seam movement, but Rajasthan’s dominating start blew away the visitors.

Sandeep Sharma strikes early to remove Rohit Sharma cheaply

When the target was 151 runs in just 11 overs, the Mumbai batters had no option but to go after every single ball from the start. They lost both Ryan Rickelton and Suryakumar Yadav early in the chase before the onus came on Rohit Sharma to take them over the line. But the former captain returned for only five runs.

To bowl the third over, the RR captain, Riyan Parag, introduced Sandeep Sharma into the attack. The first ball was a fullish delivery around the off stump as Rohit pushed it off the outer half to the backward point region. On the second delivery, the right-handed batter brought his bat down to the yorker and jammed it to short third.

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Sandeep Sharma tried magic on the third ball. He kept the line straight as the Nagpur-born lapped and got into a tangle, but fell over while laying the shot. He missed it completely and was stuck on the back leg. The replays confirmed that the ball would have gone on to hit the stumps. That was the sixth time Rohit got dismissed by Sandeep at an average of 6.33 in the IPL. 

RR gain early momentum with early breakthroughs

RR used the scorecard pressure beautifully over the visiting side, who lost half of their side for 46 runs in five overs. None of the batters of the top six, apart from Tilak Varma, could take themselves into double-digit scores. Hardik and Tilak Varma were dismissed to Ravi Bishnoi, and that was almost the last pin.

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The planning and the use of the bowlers from Parag were excellent. Moreover, they kept the right field placement as most of the shots from the MI batters found the fielders, who didn’t need to make any movement.

Brief Scores (at the time of writing): MI 93/6 (Sherfane Rutherford 25, Ravi Bishnoi 2/25) vs RR- 150/3 (Yashasvi Jaiswal 77*, AM Ghazanfar 2/21) 

Fans react as Rohit falls early in IPL 2026 match

Here is how the fans have reacted to Rohit’s early dismissal in the IPL 2026 clash against Rajasthan-