In preparation for the forthcoming Indian Premier League season, which will begin on March 28, the five-time champion Mumbai Indians started training on Monday.
The first players to show up for training were Shardul Thakur, Mayank Markande, Allah Ghazanfar, Naman Dhir, Raja Angad Bawa, Robin Minz, Raghu Sharma, Mayank Rawat, Danish Malewar, Mohammad Izhar, and Ashwani Kumar.
As preparations for the event intensify, the rest of the team—which includes players like captain Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, and Rohit Sharma—is anticipated to join the camp in the upcoming days.
“There’s always something special about the first day of pre-season. You see the players walk in, the energy builds, and the objective is to start strong. We’ve got the boys who know this franchise inside out, and we have got some exciting new faces coming in,” PTI quoted MI head coach Mahela Jayawardene as saying.
“Day one sets the tone for the entire campaign. We wanted everyone to feel the intent from the very first session, in how we train, how we prepare, and how we show up for each other. The first session is always exciting, but it’s also the start of something serious and we know what we’re building towards.”
The strength and conditioning team put players through their paces with mobility drills, agility exercises, and fitness evaluations during the first organized fitness and conditioning block of the session.
On March 29 at Wankhede Stadium, MI, who advanced to the playoffs the previous season, will play their first game of the 2026 campaign against the Kolkata Knight Riders.
