KKR bought him for INR 9.20 crore at the IPL 2026 auction.
Amidst political tensions, the BCCI has directed Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to release Bangladeshi pacer Mustafizur Rahman from their IPL 2026 squad. KKR bought him for INR 9.20 crore after intense bidding with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at the IPL 2026 auction.
There has been ample controversy surrounding the acquisition of Mustafizur, with KKR facing public backlash from across the nation. Initially, the BCCI sources stated that they didn’t receive any directive from the Indian government to limit the employment of Bangladeshi players in IPL, but the stance has changed now.
The BCCI secretary, Devajit Saikia, confirmed that recent developments forced them to ask KKR to release Mustafizur Rahman from their squad. A replacement will be allowed if the franchise wants, Saikia added.
“Due to the recent developments that are going on all across, BCCI has instructed the franchise KKR to release one of their players, Mustafizur Rahman of Bangladesh, from their squad, and BCCI has also said that if they ask for any replacement, BCCI is going to allow that replacement.”
Mustafizur Rahman was one of the top buys from Kolkata Knight Riders at the IPL 2026 auction, as they went hard to acquire him and boost their pace stocks for the next season. While KKR also bought Matheesha Pathirana, Mustafizur was an ideal backup and could have also started had the team wanted.
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Now, his absence will leave a massive void in their squad and weaken the bowling attack again. With Andre Russell retired and Pathirana’s uncertain form, KKR’s death-over bowling will take a big hit, piling pressure on Harshit Rana further.
Any replacement can’t match Mustafizur’s quality, especially since his recent form was marvellous, and he brought ample T20 experience bowling in slog overs. At the same time, the Bangladeshi pacer also provided a left-arm variety to the Knight Riders, and his forced exclusion leaves KKR without any left-arm pacers.
It’s indeed unfair to the three-time champions, and the BCCI shouldn’t have allowed him to register since political tensions were on even before the auction. Now, KKR will need to find alternatives for such a tough role at a time when options in the market are already limited, and their bowling attack surely becomes vulnerable in Mustafizur Rahman’s absence.
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