Mitchell Santner of New Zealand was replaced by South African spin-bowling all-rounder Keshav Maharaj in the Mumbai Indians’ squad for the rest of the Indian Premier League.
Santner was sidelined due to a shoulder injury he suffered during the team’s last game against Chennai Super Kings at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium.
“Mumbai Indians (MI) have signed South Africa spinner Keshav Maharaj as a replacement for Mitchell Santner, who has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 owing to a left shoulder injury,” read a statement from the IPL on Monday.
“Santner sustained the injury during MI’s last home game against Chennai Super Kings while attempting a catch near the boundary.”
“Maharaj, an experienced left-arm spinner, recently featured in the T20I series against New Zealand. He has featured in two IPL matches, representing Rajasthan Royals in 2024. He joins MI for a fee of INR 75 lakh,” it added.
In the midst of dismissing CSK’s Kartik Sharma off Jasprit Bumrah, Santner made a wonderful, diving catch and hurt his head and shoulder. Later on in the game, Shardul Thakur took his position due to a concussion.
Santner was taken for scans since he didn’t feel “stable,” according to MI head coach Jayawardene.
“I think he hit his head first, neck, obviously the shoulder as well. He went for a scan because once he got back, he felt dizziness so he was lying down. Yes, the ice (pack) was there for the shoulder. But he felt that he wasn’t stable so we took him for a scan in that situation,” PTI quoted Jayawardene telling reporters after the match.
MI’s next game is against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Wednesday.
