The Matheesha Pathirana injury update comes at a crucial time as the date for the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2026) draws closer. The Sri Lankan speedster suffered a calf injury during the recent T20 World Cup 2026 which ruled him out of the ICC event midway and cast doubts over his availability for the IPL season.
Last updated on: April 6, 2026
After multiple contrasting reports, the KKR coach Abhishek Nayar himself has provided the latest update on Matheesha Pathirana. Speaking in the pre-season press conference, Nayar revealed the Sri Lankan pacer might be available from mid April as he is still not match-fit
“He’s obviously with the Sri Lankan cricket board and they look after his rehab. The latest communication somewhere we’ve April is when they feel he’ll be match-fit. That’s what we know as of now. So that’s the update we’ve got from now,” said Nayar at KKR’s pre-season press conference.
Even, Pathirana himself has shared a post few days back on his social media that he is currently undergoing rehabilitation. While he confirmed that he was still in Sri Lanka and hadn’t travelled to India, he shared a story of himself wearing Intermittent Pneumatic Compression (IPC) devices on his legs.
He is yet to get his NOC from the Sri Lanka Cricket Board (SLC).
On April 4, it was reported by Subhayan Chakraborty (Revsportz) that Matheesha Pathirana is expected to be match fit next week and could return on April 9. If not, he will likely be ready by April 14.
In further positive news on April 6, he is close to returning from injury and has started bowling in the nets. He was spotted at the Premadasa Stadium but wasn’t bowling at full tilt. As things stand, he will be available for KKR in the near future in IPL 2026.
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While there seems to be some positive news on the Pathirana front, the KKR pace battery was left seriously depleted ahead of the IPL 2026 season. Apart from Pathirana, key pacer Harshit Rana has also been ruled out.
He had incurred a knee injury before the T20 World Cup 2026, which ruled him out of India’s title-winning campaign. He subsequently underwent surgery and was spotted limping and walking with a stick in the recent BCCI Naman Awards yesterday (March 15). He has been officially ruled out of the tournament, and the franchise is looking for a replacement.
Furthermore, Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman, who was acquired by KKR at the IPL 2026 auction had to be released owing to political reasons. To make amends, the three-time IPL winners, however, have now roped in Zimbabwe fast bowler Blessing Muzarabani as a replacement for Fizz while it is reported Simarjeet Singh is being targeted to fill in the void left by Harshit in the side.
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