Since then, in five seasons, their best finish was fourth, which came in 2023 and 2025. The change of leadership from Rohit Sharma to Hardik Pandya hasn't worked well, but it seemed that the team is settling into a stable unit heading into IPL 2026.

Among all teams in the IPL, MI have retained almost everyone that would have formed their core. They will head to the auction with a mere purse of 2.75 crore where they will have the task to rope in five players. It will be tough for MI to get any major names, though, in the auction, but they can invest in a few who they may feel might come in handy in the future.

Players released/traded out by MI: Arjun Tendulkar (traded to LSG), Bevon Jacobs, Karn Sharma, Lizaad Williams, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Reece Topley, Krishnan Shrijith, Satyanarayana Raju, Vignesh Puthur

Players retained/traded in by MI: Shardul Thakur (traded in from LSG), Sherfane Rutherford (traded in from GT), Mayank Markande (traded in from KKR), AM Ghazanfar, Ashwani Kumar, Corbin Bosch, Deepak Chahar, Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell Santner, Naman Dhir, Raghu Sharma, Raj Bawa, Robin Minz, Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Trent Boult, Will Jacks