Fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana’s IPL 2026 debut for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lasted only eight deliveries, as he had to walk off the field with hamstring discomfort during the second innings against Gujarat Titans (GT) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
Pathirana was brought in as an Impact Player for KKR’s bowling innings and handed the ball in the fourth over. In that opening spell, he gave away seven runs.
However, in his next over, the Sri Lanka pacer signalled that he was feeling pain around his hamstring area after the first ball. He then went down and needed attention from the team physio. Pathirana tried to deliver again, but the effort looked restricted rather than fully committed. After speaking with KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane, he ultimately left the field, with the over still early—two balls into his second over.
Pathirana’s arrival at KKR had been highly anticipated. The franchise acquired him for INR 18 crore (around US$ 1.875 million), but his campaign began later than expected because of fitness concerns. At the 2026 T20 World Cup, he had to leave Sri Lanka’s contest against Australia during a spell and went on to miss the remainder of the tournament.
When it came to Pathirana’s IPL return, Sri Lanka Cricket required him to clear fitness assessments related to a calf problem before issuing a no-objection certificate (NOC). That clearance was only granted four matches into KKR’s season, a period when the franchise were still without a win.
For much of KKR’s early run, Pathirana remained an unused option, staying on the bench until the team’s 12th game of the season on Saturday evening versus GT. Yet his time on the field on that occasion proved to be brief—lasting under 30 minutes before he was forced to withdraw.
