Hardik Pandya unfollowed and then followed Mumbai Indians back. Image Credit: ANI and X
RCB vs MI: There have been many times in the last 19 years in the Indian Premier League that a successful team or franchise has had downfalls. Moreover, with the five-time champions, the Mumbai Indians, languishing ninth on the IPL 2026 points table, there seems to be a fallout within the MI camp. Captain Hardik Pandya, who has been sidelined with back spasms, was in the middle of all the drama as he reportedly unfollowed his team and a couple of teammates. However, he then quickly followed the team back, but not before social media blew up with speculations.
The drama started soon after MI was officially eliminated from the playoff race on May 10 in Raipur due to a loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Hardik’s Instagram profile apparently displayed 150 accounts being followed for a short while following the game; the Mumbai Indians were not included in that list. However, supporters soon saw that the number was returned to 151, with MI once more showing up among the accounts that Pandya was following. Online rumours were sparked by that brief social media activity.
It appeared that Hardik Pandya did indeed unfollow the Mumbai Indians on Instagram. Multiple users took to social media platforms to share screenshots that showed Hardik unfollowing the five-time champions on Instagram. However, it could be an accidental unfollow as the Indian star all-rounder followed his team on Instagram only minutes later. With the Mumbai Indians having a poor season, there have been multiple rumours of a possible rift in the MI camp.
Hardik Pandya and the Mumbai Indians have not made an official statement regarding the matter. As a result, rather than being a verified fallout between the player and the franchise, the entire episode is currently just conjecture on social media. Nevertheless, the event inevitably attracted a lot of attention online due to the background of Hardik’s leadership position and Mumbai’s difficulties over the previous two seasons.
Mumbai Indians started the season with a win to kick off their season against the Kolkata Knight Riders. The five-time champions won their first game of the season for the first time in 14 years. However, the joy was short-lived as MI lost the next four games on the trot. Thanks to a special century from Tilak Varma, the Hardik Pandya-led unit defeated the Gujarat Titans. MI then went on to lose three games in a row, including two against arch-rivals, Chennai Super Kings. They won against Lucknow Super Giants to keep playoff hopes alive; however, a loss to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in their 11th game, MI has been officially eliminated from the race to the IPL 2026 playoffs.
Pragun is a passionate cricket follower and writer who deeply loves the game. Having completed his education with a degree in Journalism and Mass Communication, he has an experience of almost two years in diverse fields. He is known for his statistical and analytical articles. Pragun tries to bring life to his articles by adding a layer of enthusiasm from the perspective of a hardcore fan. Apart from writing cricket articles, he sometimes appears on YouTube videos on a friend’s podcast.
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