Kolkata Knight Riders have received a big boost as their Rs 18 crore signing Matheesha Pathirana, has started bowling in the net sessions as a part of his rehabilitation programme. This comes as a big relief for the Ajinkya Rahane-led side, who have been lacking depth in their fast-bowling department.
Earlier in the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, Matheesha Pathirana sustained a calf strain while playing for Sri Lanka. The 23-year-old pacer was picked by KKR for Rs 18 crore at the mini auction in 2025, but he is yet to arrive in India for the ongoing league which began in March.
Kolkata Knight Riders' fast-bowling problem
The Kolkata based side is going through a lot of problems in their pace attack because of so many reasons with the franchise instructed to let go of Bangladesh's star pacer Mustafizur Rehman before losing Harshit Rana because of an injury.
Later, KKR signed Zimbabwe's Blessing Muzarabani as Rehman's replacement while Harshit Rana was replaced by Navdeep Saini.
Pathirana's record in IPL
Matheesha Pathirana made his IPL debut for Chennai Super Kings in 2022 and has picked up 47 wickets in 32 outings at an economy of 8.68 and a bowling average of 21.6.
In the 2025 IPL season, Pathirana struggled a lot because of injuries and faced difficulties in managing consistency, as he managed to take only 13 wickets in 12 games at an economy rate of 10.14. After this season, he was released by CSK and was roped by KKR in the mini-auction.
In T20Is, Pathirana has taken 40 wickets in just 28 games for Sri Lanka, at an economy of 8.43 and an average of 18.3.
Kolkata Knight Riders' poor start in IPL 2026
In IPL 2026, KKR have lost two of their first three matches, with their game against Punjab Kings on Monday abandoned because of rain in Kolkata.
The three-time IPL champions stand at the eight place only because of the solitary point.