April 5, 2025: Mumbai Indians (MI) head coach Mahela Jayawardene provided an update on the condition of former captain Rohit Sharma, who was absent from MI’s playing XI during their IPL 2025 clash against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. The five-time champions, MI, suffered their third loss of the season, further adding to their struggles in the ongoing tournament.
MI captain Hardik Pandya confirmed before the match that Rohit was sidelined due to a knee injury sustained during a net session. The extent of the injury remains unclear, with no confirmed timeline for his return.
Jayawardene explained the situation during the post-match press conference, revealing that Rohit had suffered a blow to the knee in the IT band area. Despite attempting to bat the day before, Rohit was unable to put weight on the knee. He also underwent a fitness test on the day of the match but continued to experience discomfort. As a result, the team management decided it would be best for him to take a few more days to recover before returning to action. Jayawardene described the injury as unfortunate, as it occurred in the nets.
“So, Ro got hit on the knee just in the IT band, he tried to bat yesterday and could not put any weight on it. Again, he came and did a fitness test early today to try and it was discomfort for him to put weight on that, so he felt it was 100% for him to play this game. That’s why we thought we will give him a few more days to try and get through that,” Jayawardene stated.
Rohit’s absence comes after a disappointing start to IPL 2025 for the veteran batsman, having only scored 21 runs in three matches, with scores of 0, 8, and 13. His last IPL appearance was in MI’s loss to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), where he featured as an impact sub.
As Mumbai Indians sit in seventh place on the points table with just two points from four matches, they will be hoping for a quick recovery for Rohit ahead of their next clash against Royal Challengers Bangalore on April 7 at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.