WATCH: Mystery spinner from Punjab in Mumbai Indians trial ahead of IPL 2026 auction

A mystery spinner from Punjab spotted during the trail of Mumbai Indians. Ahead of the IPL 2026 auction, the multi-time IPL-winning franchise has started their preparations. To acquire some fresh talents, they have initiated a trial process. During a trial session, a spinner from Punjab named Shubham Rana was spotted. The Mumbai Indians are famously known for their eye for bringing up raw talents. As they picked Rana for the trials, that means the bowler has serious potential. 

Who is Shubham Rana? 

Shubham Rana is an emerging, talented spinner who has already made his mark in the domestic cricket circuit. He is a Chinaman bowler, a rare kind of bowler in cricket. Kuldeep Yadav is a famous Chinaman spinner. Rana is known for his tight bowling, delivering lethal googly and pace variations. He has played in various age group tournaments with notable success. 

There are many videos on social media platforms, from which we can see some glimpses of Rana's bowling skills. The googly he delivers often takes sharp turns to out-perform the batters. He often likes to take risks by offering extra flights to force batters to get out of their shell. There are many instances when a batter misjudged the pace of Rana's delivery. Rajasthan Royals utilized him as the net bowler for the last couple of seasons but did not intend to bet on him during the auction. 

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Rana performed brilliantly during this year’s Cooch Behar Trophy by claiming 33 wickets at 17.12 runs apiece in 11 outings. During the Vinoo Mankad Trophy 2024, the upcoming spinner, who can take wickets at crucial times of a match, took 18 wickets at an average of 11.44 and a strike rate of 16.44, with an economy rate of 4.17, in six matches.

Mumbai Indians in IPL 2025

In the IPL 2025, Mumbai Indians finished their campaign in the 4th spot of the points table. They started the season with back-to-back defeats, but they proved their mettle soon. They bounced back and qualified for the round of four. In 14 matches, the former IPL champion team got 16 points as they won 8 matches and suffered 6 defeats.