Shardul Thakur has joined the Mumbai Indians (MI) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season in a trade deal. The all-rounder has been traded to MI for his existing player fee of Rs 2 crore, the IPL announced.
In a separate deal between the two franchises, Arjun Tendulkar is set to leave MI and join LSG.
According to a report by Times Of India, both trades are straight-forward cash deals and independent of each other. For Thakur, who captains Mumbai in the domestic Ranji Trophy, it will be seen as sort of a homecoming.
🚨 NEWS 🚨
November 13, 2025
Shardul Thakur has been traded to @mipaltan from @LucknowIPL.
More Details 👉 https://t.co/drd5BdO3fS#TATAIPL | @imShard pic.twitter.com/fG7QcIP07UThe 34-year-old all-rounder was a support bowler for MI from 2010-12 in the IPL. He made his IPL debut for Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab), then moved Rising Pune Supergiant.
Thakur won the IPL title in 2018 and 2021 with the Chennai Super Kings. He has then become a journeyman cricketer in the IPL moving to Delhi Capitals and Kolkata Knight Riders, before heading back to CSK.
He was unsold in the 2025 IPL auction. But was then picked up by LSG at his base price of Rs 2 crore.
Arjun, son of Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar, has been with MI since 2023. He played four matches in his debut season in 2023 and one match in the 2024 season. But didn't play any match in the 2025 season.
The left-arm medium-fast bowler plays for Goa in the Ranji Trophy. He has taken 47 wickets and scored 581 runs in first-class cricket, with a high score of 120.
Thakur, on the other hand, has played 13 Tests, 47 ODIs and 25 T20Is for India. He was part of the Indian team that famously won the Gabba Test against Australia in the tour in 2020-21.
MI also brought in West Indies batter Sherfane Rutherford from the Gujarat Titans (GT) in another trade deal. Rutherford was traded for Rs 2.6 crore, the same amount for which GT got him in the last auction.
The IPL 2026 auction is scheduled to be held in Abu Dhabi next month. Ahead of the auction, the IPL franchises have until Nov. 15, 2025, to finalise their player retention.
Before the deadline, all ten teams are required to confirm and publish the names of players they plan to keep or release. The auction is likely to be held between Dec. 15 and Dec. 16, according to a PTI report.
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