Manish Pandey Goes Past MS Dhoni To Join Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma For Unique IPL Feat During SRH Vs KKR

(MENAFN- Live Mint) Manish Pandey went past MS Dhoni to join Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma to become the third cricketer to play at least one match in each of 19 seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Pandey's milestone moment came on Sunday when Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) captain Ajinkya Rahane named the Karnataka batter in the playing XI for the first time in IPL 2026.

Pandey replaced Ramandeep Singh against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International stadium. Before Pandey, only Rohit (Deccan Chargers and Mumbai Indians ) and Kohli (Royal Challengers Bengaluru) had played in all of 19 seasons of IPL. Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) five-time IPL-winning captain Dhoni would have been on the list, but the 44-year-old is yet to play a game in the 2026 season due to a calf strain.

Also Read | Manish Pandey, once IPL star, makes a comeback for KKR, silences Wankhede by...

Pandey, who was a part of India's U-19 side in 2008 that won the World Cup, started his IPL career with Mumbai Indians in the same year. The next two years, Pandey spent at Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). In fact, Pandey was the first Indian batter to score an IPL hundred in the league's history. He had scored an unbeaten 114 off 73 for RCB at the age of 19 against now-defunct Deccan Chargers in 2009, which remains his only IPL ton so far.

Post his RCB stint, Pandey spent three seasons with erstwhile Pune Warriors India from 2011 and 2013 before spending four seasons with KKR. In fact, Pandey played the match-winning knock of 94 against Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings) in the 2014 IPL final. After his release by KKR, Pandey was a part of Sunrisers Hyderabad squad from 2018 to 2021.

It was followed by Pandey's uneventful stints with Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals before returning to KKR in the 2024 season.

Also Read | WATCH: Rovman Powell ends Heinrich Klaasen's stay at the cost of his shades Manish Pandey's stats in IPL

So far, Pandey played 175 games in IPL, scoring 3942 runs at a strike rate of 121.51. The highlight of Pandey's IPL came in 2014 and 2020, scoring 400-plus runs. In 2014, Pandey scored 401 runs in 16 matches for KKR while in 2020, the right-hander scored 425 runs for Sunrisers Hyderabad. In 2017, Pandey had scored 396 runs for KKR.

For India, Pandey played 29 ODIs and 39 T20Is with his last international match coming in 2021 against Sri Lanka. In ODIs, Pandey scored 566 runs at an average of 33.29 with one century and two half-centuries while in the shortest format of te game, the right-hander scored 709 runs at a strike rate of 126.15 and average of 44.31 with three half-centuries to his name.

'It's been a great journey for me'

Earlier, Pandey said the 19 years have passed in a flash.“It's been a great journey for me - 19 years and 19th year going on right now," Pandey said in a video by KKR. "Started with MI in the first year after the U19 World Cup. It was a great memory to start with, but honestly, it feels like it has all just passed in a flash, in a moment.

"So I've seen from 2008 to about 2026, this year going on. It's been a great memory overall in general and happy to be one of those few players who've been part of all the IPLs and trying to do justice to myself, to this game. It's purely here because of the passion and the love for the game,” he added.

“The way the tournament was going for us, I was not expecting that I'd open the inning and get that opportunity to get those runs, which has helped me a lot. But definitely, it was a great memory being the first Indian to get a hundred and the youngest then. But now it's obviously somebody else has the record," said Pandey further in the video.

Also Read | Manish Pandey guides KKR to second IPL title

“But just being in the situation from that point of view is really amazing. This game has taught us a lot. Obviously, this tournament has taught us a lot and we are continuously evolving with it. Hopefully, we learn a lot more. It was a little different back then when we started," added the Karnataka batter.

Catch the live updates from IPL 202 with the complete IPL 2026 Schedul and the IPL 2026 Points Tabl. Also, know who are currently leading the charts in IPL 2026 Orange Ca and IPL 2026 Purple Ca.

MENAFN03052026007365015876ID1111064183