With the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 closing to its half-stage mark, in match number 25, the former champions Gujarat Titans (GT) will host the three-time winners, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on April 17.
The Shubman Gill & Co. will be confident as they come after a win over Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), but the season has been a forgettable one so far for the Knight Riders.
The Ajinkya Rahane & Co. are yet to get their maiden win this season and will be looking to get into the groove before it gets too late. While the team has faced several player concerns, one of them is surrounding the Sri Lankan pacer, Matheesha Pathirana. The lanky pacer, who is known for his unique action is yet to join the KKR squad despite the team acquiring him for INR 18 Crore at the 2026 auction.
Pathirana set to miss GT vs KKR IPL 2026 clash
The 23-year-old who has been out of action since the T20 World Cup 2026, however cleared the fitness test organised by the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC) and has been granted the No-Objection Certificate (NOC); he is yet to reach India. According to a KKR spokesperson, who was quoted by The Hindu, the franchise is working on ‘logistics’ to get him to India for the remaining IPL 2026.
With the side still figuring out his arrangements, he is set to miss KKR’s upcoming game, scheduled on April 17. As a result, Blessing Mezarabi is likely to continue in the XI along with other bowling options.
Kolkata Knight Riders IPL 2026 squad
Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), Rinku Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Manish Pandey, Finn Allen, Tejasvi Singh, Rahul Tripathi, Tim Seifert, Rovman Powell, Anukul Roy, Cameron Green, Sarthak Ranjan, Daksh Kamra, Rachin Ravindra, Ramandeep Singh, Sunil Narine, Blessing Muzarabani, Vaibhav Arora, Matheesha Pathirana, Kartik Tyagi, Prashant Solanki, Saurabh Dubey, Navdeep Saini, Umran Malik, Varun Chakaravarthy.
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