Former India cricketer Irfan Pathan has highlighted Mumbai Indians promising left-arm pacer, Mohammed Izhar, as a player who could impress many in IPL 2026 with his clever variations.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Irfan Pathan talked about Mohammed Izhar and his skills as a left arm fast bowler. He said that Izhar has a very effective slower ball, especially the back of the hand variation, which can trouble batters.
“Mohammed Izhar has also come in. He is a left-arm bowler. His back-of-the-hand slower one is very good. In his action, his short balls look very fast. He also bowls on the fuller length. He can bowl at a speed of 135 km/h. But it is his slow ball that will be interesting to watch,” Irfan Pathan said.
While players like Ashwini Kumar did well in debut season, Izhar is also someone to watch in IPL 2026.
“Since Ashwini Kumar performed very well last year as a left-arm fast bowler, you will definitely pay attention to him at first, but keep an eye on Izhar as well,” he added.
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Mohammad Izhar was bought by Mumbai Indians for INR 30 lakhs in the IPL 2026 auction. He plays domestic cricket for Bihar. In the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2025, he made his debut for them and took nine wickets in five matches, with an economy rate of 7.11. His best figures came against Madhya Pradesh, where he picked up 4/39.
Mumbai Indians are known for developing young talent. Last season, they showed a lot of trust in Ashwini Kumar, who played seven matches in his debut season. This year, Izhar could also get a chance to feature in some games. MI have many options in their pace attack, so it will be interesting to see if Izhar gets an opportunity.
He will benefit from being around experienced players. He will share the dressing room with Rohit Sharma, Suryakumar Yadav and Hardik Pandya, along with pacers like Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult and other senior players. This will help him learn from them, get advice on how to improve his game.
We have already seen a player from Bihar, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi, who impressed everyone last season when he got the opportunity. This time, it could be Izhar’s turn.
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