IPL 2026: Kagiso Rabada stuns Mumbai Indians with three-fer
What's the story
Gujarat Titans pacer Kagiso Rabada delivered a stunning opening spell in Match 30 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 against the Mumbai Indians at Ahmedabad's Narendra Modi Stadium. The South African pacer took three wickets in his first three overs during the powerplay, leaving MI's top order in tatters. His victims included debutant Danish Malewar, last game's centurion Quinton de Kock, and the dangerous Suryakumar Yadav. Here are further details.
Game changer
Rabada's fiery spell rattles MI top order
Rabada's first victim was debutant Malewar (2), who was trapped in front by the Proteas pacer in the second over of the match. He then dismissed his South African compatriot de Kock for 13 in the fourth over. Rabada bowled a 152.1 kph thunderbolt to uproot Yadav's (15) stumps after he had started off well with a maximum and four earlier in his innings. This spell reduced MI to 44/3.
StatsÂ
Successive three-fers for Rabada
Rabada, who finished his spell with 3/33 from four overs, claimed his second successive three-fer. With his latest efforts, the pacer now owns 129 wickets from 90 IPL matches at an average of 22.91. His economy reads 8.69. His IPL 2026 tally now reads 10 wickets from six games at 22.40. His economy of 9.73 is on the higher side. Against MI, Rabada has completed 17 wickets from 14 matches (ER: 8.62).
Information
Over 300 wickets in T20 cricketÂ
As per ESPNcricinfo, Rabada has got to 309 wickets overall in T20s (252 matches). He averages 24-plus with his economy rate being around 8.2.
Recovery attempt
MI bounce back despite early setbacks
After Rabada's early strikes, Naman Dhir and Tilak Varma tried to stabilize the innings with a 52-run partnership for the fourth wicket. However, their efforts were cut short by Prasidh Krishna, who dismissed Dhir for 45 in the 13th over. Varma, however, went on to hit a stunning 101* as MI finished at 199/5.