Suryakumar Yadav's cost per run in IPL 2026 [Source: AFP]The Mumbai Indians ended their IPL 2026 campaign on Sunday, May 24, with yet another disappointing loss, as they fell short of the 206-run target against the Rajasthan Royals by 30 runs.For a change, Suryakumar Yadav scored a fifty on the afternoon and finished the season with 60 off 42. Interestingly, this was only his second half-century of the season for him, contrary to his reputation of playing high-octane cricket. Having set a high benchmark for himself, the Indian T20 World Cup-winning captain was nowhere close to his best in IPL 2026.The string of underwhelming performances from Suryakumar Yadav coincidentally overlapped with poor seasons for all the core members of the team, resulting in capitulation. They started the season with a win in the opening match, but what followed was nothing short of catastrophic for the Men in Blue. In the next 13 league matches, they only managed three more wins and were knocked out as the second team. They finished the season at number 9, level on points with the bottom-placed Lucknow Super Giants.As Suryakumar Yadav's form proved detrimental to MI's aspirations, in pursuit of their 6th title, we take a look at how much every run from his bat cost the team.Suryakumar Yadav's IPL 2026 priceMumbai's very own Suryakumar Yadav made his return to the franchise in IPL 2018 after the mega auction and immediately became one of their most bankable batter.During this period, he scored fewer than 350 runs three times before IPL 2026 and in two of those seasons, he still scored an average of 43.28 and a strike rate of 145.67 (IPL 2022) and 34.50/167.47 (IPL 2024), while playing 8 and 11 matches, respectively.Also Read: Suryakumar Yadav Issues Fresh Injury Update Before India's Next T20I SeriesDue to his consistency and incredible approach, he was handed a bumper contract of INR 16.35 crore as one of their retained players after IPL 2024. Additionally, in IPL 2026, his match salary was INR 7.5 lakh, and he featured in 13 matches, accumulating 97.50 lakh in match fees.So, adding up his contract and match fees, Suryakumar Yadav made INR 17,32,50,000 (17.325 crore) in IPL 2026, exclusive of all taxes.How did Suryakumar Yadav perform in IPL 2026?Heading into the season, Suryakumar Yadav was in high confidence after winning the T20 World Cup at home.Batting at 3 and 4 in the majority of the matches, he consistently failed to get going and got found out cheaply. Despite getting a 51(36) in the second match of the season, he had to wait for the season's final game to cross that mark again. While the landmark isn't the most important thing in T20 cricket, he even failed to get quick starts this season.He missed only one match in the entirety of the season, but he only got 270 runs in 13 innings at an average of 20.76 and a strike rate of 147.52. This is his worst season in an MI jersey since becoming a mainstay in 2018. His 60 vs RR in the last match also took him past 4000-run mark for MI.Suryakumar Yadav's cost per run in IPL 2026Suryakumar Yadav earned INR 17.325 crore in IPL 2026 for his 270 runs. This means for every run scored, he received approximately INR 6.42 lakh.In IPL 2025, where he had the same contract, he scored 717 runs in 16 matches, which is more than double this season's returns.Will Suryakumar Yadav be released to the IPL 2027 auction pool?Mayank's take on Suryakumar Yadav's retentionOver the years, Suryakumar Yadav has proven that he is worthy of every penny spent on him, especially during this ongoing MI stint. While being at MI, he has also contested for the Orange Cap.While this year was tough for him and the team, and there are evident signs of a decline over the last 12-18 months, he has enough credits to his name to be retained for IPL 2027. It will be the last year of the ongoing IPL cycle, and if the underperformances continue in the next season, then such a decision can be taken.Also Read: RCB's Record In IPL Qualifier 1 Ahead Of Mega Clash Vs Gujarat Titans
