Mumbai Indians (MI) entered the <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ipl-2026-shreyas-iyer-speaks-about-cooper-connolly-inclusion-in-punjab-kings-23608154" rel="nofollow">Indian Premier League</a> (IPL) 2026 auction with an amount of just 2.75 crore as they retained the bulk of their squad.
However, the franchise still managed to buy South Africa's Quinton de Kock for Rs 1 crore.
Speaking about his inclusion, former cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin said that the Mumbai-based franchise may be trying to replicate the squad from the 202 edition of the league.
"I think the <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ind-vs-sa-2nd-t20i-quinton-de-kock-uncorks-big-win-in-punjab-23607373" rel="nofollow">Quinton de Kock</a> buy was a good move. I think the other franchises were sleeping on their haunches, and MI snooped it up. I think MI are not sure about the Rickelton opening combination. I think MI are trying to replicate their IPL 2020 championship squad, only Ishan Kishan is not there," he said on his YouTube channel.
Apart from de Kock, the franchise also tasted success in acquiring the services of Danish Malewar, Mohammad Izhar, Atharva Ankolekar, and Mayank Rawat during the IPL 2026 auction.
Speaking on the new inclusions, Ashwin said <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ipl-2025-how-boult-bumrah-and-supla-shots-scripted-mumbai-indians-late-season-resurgence-23553322" rel="nofollow">Mumbai</a> had only 2.75 crore, but it seemed like Rs 27 crore after buying other players.
"MI had 2.75 crore, but it was as if they had 27 crore, because they bought so many players. MI already had a winning squad before they went into the IPL auction, and now, after the auction, they look even stronger," said the 39-year-old cricketer.
The upcoming edition of the league is set to kick off from March 26 to May 31, 2026. It remains to be seen if defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru's home base gets a game after a deadly stampede halted all big-ticket cricket at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
As per established norms, the Chinnaswamy should host the tournament opener, given that the home side, <a href="https://www.mid-day.com/sports/cricket/article/ipl-2026-rcb-acquire-venkatesh-iyer-services-for-rs-7-crore-in-auction-23608002" rel="nofollow">RCB</a>, won the IPL 2025 title, but that is unlikely to be clear till the time the BCCI comes out with the full-scale schedule. The venue was witness to chaos and a stampede, which left 11 dead, after the Bengaluru-based franchise's trophy celebrations drew lakhs on the streets.
<h2>Mumbai Indians updated squad for IPL 2026:</h2>
Hardik Pandya, Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Ryan Rickleton, Robin Minz, Raj Bawa, Raghu Sharma, Mitchell Santner, Corbin Bosch, Naman Dhir, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult, Allah Ghafanzar, Ashwani Kumar, Deepak Chahar, Will Jacks, Sherfane Rutherford, Mayank Markande, Shardul Thakur, Quinton de Kock, Danish Malewar, Mohammad Izhar, Atharva Ankolekar, Mayank Rawat.
(With ANI Inputs)

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