Matheesha Pathirana - (Source: AFP)
On Sunday, April 26, Lucknow Super Giants hosted Kolkata Knight Riders for IPL 2026 match 38. The two teams are placed 9th and 10th on the table and are in desperate need of a win. KKR are in much more dire state for a win and are boosted with Matheesha Pathirana's return to the squad.
The fans were excited to see Sri Lanka seamer return to IPL. However, much to everyone's surprise, KKR named an unchanged XI against LSG, meaning Pathirana still sits out. The fans are curious about his absence and this article will shed light on why Matheesha Pathirana is not playing in LSG vs KKR IPL 2026 match.
Why Is Matheesha Pathirana Not Playing vs LSG?
Notably, KKR have played 7 matches in this tournament and registered a solitary win. The Ajinkya Rahane-led side saw their first win in the last match, which is why the team is hesitant to make changes to their playing XI.
Therefore, one of the reason behind Matheesha Pathirana's absence from the playing XI is tactical one as the team didn't want to disrupt the combination.
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Another possible reason is him not recovering fully from the injury. For the unversed, Pathirana recently recovered from an injury and was granted an NOC by Sri Lanka cricket to travel to India. Therefore, it is possible that he is close to full fitness, but still not match ready.
LSG vs KKR Toss Update
Meanwhile, for the toss, two captains - Rishabh Pant and Ajinkya Rahane walked down the middle for the coin flip. The luck favoured the hosts and LSG opted to field first.
Talking about team changes, LSG have made a solitary change which is George Linde comines for M. Siddharth. For Kolkata Knight Riders, they are going ahead with the same playing XI.
LSG vs KKR: Playing XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders Playing XI: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Tim Seifert (wk), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh (vc), Sunil Narine, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi
Lucknow Super Giants Playing XI: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Rishabh Pant (c/wk), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Mukul Choudhary, George Linde, Mohammed Shami, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Mohsin Khan
LSG vs KKR: Captains Thoughts
Rishabh Pant (Lucknow Super Giants Captain): "We are going to bowl first. We want to again put the opposition to bat first and then you will just find it's answer as a batting group.
(Changes) Just one change. Linde comes in for Siddharth.
(On having so many leaders in the group) See, definitely we are working towards it. When there are lots of leaders in the family, it's important to find a way to win games. We are pretty close to finding ways and we have to stick together and turn it around. I am pretty confident to make it happen.
Ajinkya Rahane (Kolkata Knight Riders Captain): "[On what he would have done, had he won the toss] We were looking to bat first.
[On conditions] At the moment, for us it is important to see how we are playing as a team. Bowling unit is coming together nicely. Reason I wanted to bat first is to give our batters that freedom. Again, in the end, you have to assess the conditions quickly and win those crucial moments in the game.
LSG vs KKR: Impact Subs
Lucknow Super Giants: Himmat Singh, Akshat Raghuwanshi, Abdul Samad, Avesh Khan, M Siddharth
Also Read: Slowest Fifty In IPL 2026! Ruturaj Gaikwad's 49-Ball Half-Century Sets New Record
Kolkata Knight Riders: Manish Pandey, Finn Allen, Tejasvi Singh, Navdeep Saini, Varun Chakaravarthy
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