NEW DELHI: Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) continue to struggle with injuries to their pace bowling as Indian pacer Akash Deep has been ruled out of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL), Cricbuzz reported on Saturday.Akash Deep has not reported for the Kolkata Knight Riders camp which is underway in Kolkata from March 18, according to a Circbuzz report.Earlier, Harshit Rana was also ruled out for the season due to an injury sustained during a warm-up match ahead of the recently concluded T20 World Cup.Meanwhile, pacer Matheesha Pathiran is expected to miss the initial stages of KKR.
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IPL 2026 should be an audition for India’s next T20I captainAbhishek Nayar said at KKR’s pre-season press conference that Pathirana is undergoing rehabilitation with the Sri Lanka Cricket Board and is expected to be fit around mid-April.“The last update we know is that he’s apparently with the Sri Lankan cricket board and they’ve taken off his rehab. And the last communication we’ve had is hopefully sometime in mid-April when they feel he’ll be fit. That’s what we know as of now,” he said.Earlier, Bangladesh paceman Mustafizur Rahman was also released by KKR on BCCI directives amid heightened India-Bangladesh tension. The problem escalated to the extent that Bangladesh pulled out of the T20 World Cup and refused to play in India and Scotland came in as a replacement.KKR will begin their IPL 2026 campaign against Mumbai Indians on March 29 at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The three-time champions will then take on Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata on April 2 before taking on last year’s finalists, Punjab Kings, also at the Eden Gardens on April 6.In their fourth IPL match, KKR will face Lucknow Super Giants on April 9 at the Eden Gardens.
