Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders have suffered heavily ahead of the IPL 2026. The franchise released Mustafizur Rahman following BCCIโs guidelines, while their star all-rounder Harshit Rana is ruled out of the season. Matheesha Pathirana, who was bought for INR 18 crore, was expected to solve the death-over woes, but heโs still dealing with a hamstring injury and is very likely to miss the first few games of the season.
That has put KKR in a difficult spot as they now have a very inexperienced bowling unit. The spin duo of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy will do the heavy-lifting, while Vaibhav Arora will lead the pace unit. He has done a decent job so far but it needs to be seen how the pacer fares in the absence of a premier fast bowler in the ranks. Meanwhile, until Pathirana joins, Blessing Muzarabani is expected to feature in the XI.
How will KKRโs top order shape?
Finn Allen is very likely to open alongside captain Ajinkya Rahane. Tim Seifert has shown immense potential in the nets but KKR are likely to back the X-factor Allen, who recently smacked a commanding 33-ball century in the T20 World Cup semi-final against South Africa at the Eden Gardens. Rahane, on the other hand, had a blistering outing in the intra-squad match.
Australia international Cameron Green, who was bought for INR 25.2 crore in the auction, is expected to bat at number three, while Angkrish Raghuvanshi could be slotted in at number four. The Mumbai batter is again someone who has shown immense potential in the nets, scoring a century in the first intra-squad match.
KKR are likely to back three Indians for the finishing role. Rinku Singh is a proven custodian while Ramandeep Singh has KKRโs backing, but this season could be his final opportunity to prove his mettle. Alongside the duo, Tejasvi Dahiya could be slotted at number six, in Andre Russellโs position. The keeper-batter is an aggressive hitter, who could be a differential for KKR this season.ย
Kolkata Probable XI
Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Tejasvi Dahiya (wk), Ramandeep Singh, Sunil Narine, Vaibhav Arora, Blessing Muzarabani, Varun Chakravarthy
Batting Impact Player – Manish Pandey
Bowling Impact Player – Anukul Roy/Kartik Tyagi
Also Read: