When will Matheesha Pathirana join KKR squad for IPL 2026?
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KKR bought Matheesha Pathirana for INR 18 crore in IPL 2026 auction.
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will aim for a big comeback in Indian Premier League 2026 after a dismal show last season. The three-time champions have retained Ajinkya Rahane as the captain for IPL 2026 but have made many changes in the squad.
In the mini-auction, KKR bought a total of 13 players into their squad. Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana was their second costliest pick at INR 18 crore after Cameron Green (INR 25.20 crore). After the ouster of Mustafizur Rahman due to a controversy and Harshit Rana and Akash Deep due to injuries, Pathirana will be the most crucial pacer in the KKR squad.
However, the right-arm pacer himself has been battling an injury after he suffered a severe calf strain in a clash against Australia in the first round of T20 World Cup 2026 in February. He was also ruled out of the remainder of the tournament. He has been undergoing rehabilitation for his injury and is set to miss the initial games in IPL 2026.
Matheesha Pathirana to join KKR squad on March 29
Pathirana is yet to receive a No-Objection Certificate (NoC) from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) to play in IPL 2026. But, according to a report by Aajkaal, he will join the KKR squad on March 29, just ahead of their opening game in the tournament.
The Ajinkya Rahane & Co. will face Mumbai Indians in their first game on March 29 (Sunday) at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. They will later lock horns with Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on April 2, Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 6, and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) on April 10.
Despite joining the KKR squad, Pathirana will not participate in the opening games and will undergo rehabilitation in India. He is expected to be match-ready by mid-April.
Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik, Kartik Tyagi, Saurabh Dubey, and Blessing Muzarabani are other pacers in their squad. The IPL 2024 champions are also looking for a replacement for Rana but have not finalised it so far.
Matheesha Pathirana is part of which team in IPL 2026?
Pathirana is part of Kolkata Knight Riders in the tournament.
Who is the captain of KKR?
Ajinkya Rahane is the captain of Kolkata Knight Riders.
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Vikas Singh Derek is a core cricket-lover since childhood and has always followed the sport both in his personal and professional life. He started his school life by watching cricket at home with family. Later, he played cricket on the field at local clubs during college. After his Master's in Journalism from Mumbai, he followed his passion by covering cricket news across various digital media. Since 2015, he has been an aspiring sports journalist and cricket content writer with over 50K+ articles.