Watch: Hardik Pandya, Rishabh Pant share hilarious banter at IPL 2026 captains’ meet in Mumbai

When the captains of ten teams meet, the vibe around the place changes instantly. In the captain's meet ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, the players came together at the BCCI headquarters like every year. Two new captains, Ishan Kishan and Riyan Parag joined the players this time. During the captain's meet, Rishabh Pant and Hardik Pandya had a hilarious encounter.

When Pandya was batting, the host instantly asked him to play a no-look shot and he agreed to it. However, he missed the shot but went on to say that has hit a six. The players around him burst out laughing, including Rishabh, who was standing behind the wickets. He showed with his hand gestures that it was a six.

However, Pandya played another ball and went on to hit a six. The players gathered in Mumbai ahead of the tournament and were given a briefing by former India player Javagal Srinath and Nitin Menon, who are the heads of the match referees and umpires panels, respectively. The players had a photoshoot session and engaged with each other.

IPL 2026 to start on March 28

The IPL 2026 is all set to start from March 28 between the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. The match is scheduled to start at 7.30 PM IST. The opening ceremony will be held a few hours before the match in Bengaluru. The fans are anticipating a thrilling tournament this season considering the kind of players who are in the squads.

In fact, the skippers have done well in the past and will be looking forward to doing the same in the upcoming season. A lot of responsibility will be on Parag and Kishan. While the RR captain was the stand-in captain in the previous season, Kishan is SRH’s stand-in captain in this season.