Mumbai Indians They suffered a heavy 103-run defeat by arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings at the Wankhede Stadium on 23 April.
While Sanju Samson stole the show with an unbeaten century and Akeal Hosein tightened the screws with four wickets, one of the major talking points of the game was that Mumbai Indians brought in Shardul Thakur as a concussion sub. michel santner.
The New Zealand spinner was ruled out with an injury in the 17th over when he dived forward at deep square leg to complete the catch of Karthik Sharma off Jasprit Bumrah. The physio was brought to the field and Santner had to go out holding his left shoulder. The replay of the catch also shows that he was hitting the ground with the side of his head.
Shardul Thakur was brought into the Mumbai batting innings as a replacement for Santner but he failed to make an impact and ended with six runs in 12 balls, capping a disappointing day for the Mumbai Indians batsmen.
Questions were raised after pictures of Santner wearing an ice pack on his shoulder went viral on social media. Fans were seen questioning why a concussion sub was needed if the injury was to the player's shoulder.
MI coach Mahela Jayawardene clarified
Mumbai Indians coach Mahela Jayawardene Explained the condition that led to the concussion replacement.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Jayawardene said, “Santner first hit his head, neck and obviously also his shoulder. Then he went for a scan. When he came back he felt dizzy, so he lay down. Yes, there was ice on the shoulder, but they felt he was not stable, so we took him for a scan in that position.”
He said, “We requested concussion sub. It is at the discretion of the match referee and umpires. They allowed Shardul Thakur. It is what it is. But hopefully Santner's injury is not that bad. Once he comes back, we will have a look at it.”
Before the incident, Santner had completed his quota of four overs, taking the early wicket of Sarfaraz Khan in the powerplay, with figures of 1/44. Santner had earlier suffered a minor shoulder injury while fielding against Delhi Capitals on April 4, due to which he had to miss the next match against five-time champions Rajasthan Royals.
Watch the replay of Mitchell Santner's catch here:
What does the law say on concussion substitutes?
Clause 1.2.9 of the IPL 2026 playing conditions which deals with the concussion option, states that substitution may be allowed “if a player sustains a concussion or suspected concussion as a result of a head or neck injury during the relevant match.”
The team doctor is then required to “formally diagnose a concussion or suspected concussion” before the team manager can submit a formal request for a concussion replacement to the match referee.
“The IPL match referee must generally approve a concussion substitution request if the replacement is an identical player whose inclusion would not be of immense benefit to his team for the remainder of the match.
“If the IPL Match Referee believes that the inclusion of a nominated concussion replacement, when performing his normal role, would be of immense benefit to his team, then the IPL Match Referee may impose such conditions on the identification and participation of the concussion replacement as he deems appropriate, consistent with the principal objective of facilitating equitable replacement for a player with a concussion.”
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