Harshit Rana bagged 34 wickets in the last two seasons for KKR.
The three-time champions, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), are struggling with a string of injury concerns before the IPL 2026. Amidst this, seamer Harshit Rana’s unavailability for the upcoming season has further increased the franchise’s headaches ahead of the tournament.
Previously, the 24-year-old had picked up a knee injury during India’s warm-up game before the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2026. Unfortunately, it sidelined the bowler from the entire mega T20 event before also ruling him out from the forthcoming season of the mega T20 league. Rana was a vital cog in KKR’s bowling line-up and his absence could trouble the side in the IPL 2026.
As per the sources, KKR are likely to rope in the former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) pacer Simarjeet Singh to replace the star India fast bowler in their IPL 2026 squad. The team had recently conducted trials for multiple pacers to fill up Rana’s spot. Among them, the Delhi player is believed to be leading the race to join the Knight Riders’ camp.
Earlier, the player was acquired by CSK in the IPL 2022 mega auction. He scalped nine wickets in 10 matches across two seasons for the Chennai outfits. However, the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) had roped him in for INR 1.5 crore last season, but the 28-year-old managed to snare only two scalps in four fixtures at an expensive economy of 14.10.
Notably, there are also questions around the availability of KKR’s key addition of the season, Matheesha Pathirana. Rana and Mustafizur Rahman’s absence has already weakened the franchise’s pace attack. The team’s IPL 2026 hopes would suffer another major hit if the star Sri Lankan seamer also fails to feature in the forthcoming edition of the tournament.
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The 2024 winners will lock horns with one of the most successful teams of the league, the Mumbai Indians (MI), on their IPL 2026 opener. The Hardik Pandya-led MI dominates the head-to-head records, winning 24 out of their total 35 encounters. But the Men in Purple would also want to start off the season on a winning note.
The away fixture will be followed by three other exciting clashes in the IPL 2026 phase one, facing SRH, Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG). All of them will take place at the iconic Eden Gardens Stadium.
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