Home
Kolkata Knight Riders are without their two key spin bowlers, Varun Chakaravarthy and Sunil Narine, for their match against Punjab Kings on Monday in IPL 2026 at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and chose to bat first at Eden Gardens. After the toss, he explained why both players were missing. Chakaravarthy suffered an injury while taking a catch in the previous game against Sunrisers Hyderabad, while Narine is unwell.
“We have two forced changes. Unfortunately, Varun Chakaravarthy got injured taking the catch in the last game, and Narine is sick," Rahane said.
This is a big setback for KKR. Narine and Chakaravarthy have been very important for the team over the past few seasons. Their performances played a major role in KKR’s title win in 2024 and also helped them stay competitive in 2025. Even when they don’t take wickets, both bowlers are known for controlling the run flow and building pressure, especially on batting-friendly pitches. This is the first time since April 12, 2019 that the Kolkata-based franchise is featuring without Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine.
ALSO READ: Ex-India head coach calls out CSK’s poor form after 3 straight IPL 2026 losses
To deal with their absence, KKR made a few changes to the team. Navdeep Saini was brought in as an extra fast bowler in place of Chakaravarthy. Meanwhile, Rovman Powell was added to strengthen the batting after Narine missed out. This means Anukul Roy is the only specialist spinner in the playing XI.
ALSO READ: WATCH: Patidar, Karthik caught in fiery exchange with on-field umpires
KKR vs PBKS playing XIs
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Cooper Connolly, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi.
ADVERTISEMENT
