Kusal Mendis (L) & SRH's two star players (Source: AFP Photos)
One of the integral members of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), who won one of the most prestigious awards in the Indian Premier League (IPL) in the past, will be captaining in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) 2026 following the unfortunate Kusal Mendis injury.
Kusal, Sri Lanka’s white-ball captain, was ruled out of LPL 2026 after a hamstring injury. He was leading Colombo Kaps until sustaining the injury setback. Notably, under Kusal Mendis, Colombo had won once and lost twice in LPL 2026, which began on July 17 and run until August 8.
Blessing In Disguise For Kamindu Mendis With Kusal Mendis Injury
Kamindu Mendis, who won the distinguished award after IPL 2025 named ‘Best Catch Of The Season’ while playing for SRH, replaced Kusal Mendis as Colombo Kaps captain for LPL 2026.
In fact, he was in action as a leader of Colombo Kaps on Thursday when they were up against Kandy Royals in Match 9 of LPL 2026 at Rangiri Dambulla International Stadium.
Unfortunately for him, all he could do was scoring 1 off 4 balls as Colombo Kaps captain, as Shaheen Afridi cleaned him up in the second over of their innings.
When Kusal Mendis Became Sri Lanka Captain?
Kusal Mendis, who was Sri Lanka’s captain in ODI World Cup 2023 in India, was re-appointed as white-ball captain in May. He replaced Charith Asalanka as ODI skipper and Dasun Shanaka in the T20Is, and his first assignment was Sri Lanka tour of West Indies last month.
On his return as Sri Lanka Kusal had not so great tour in the West Indies. They won the ODI opener by 41 runs before the remaining two 50-over matches were washed out.
After that, West Indies defeated Sri Lanka in the T20Is with a 2-1 margin.
When Did Kamindu Mendis Join SRH?
Ahead of IPL 2025, SRH signed Kamindu Mendis for INR 75 Lakh. He made a lot of noise in his debut by becoming the first-ever bowler in the history of IPL to use both of his arms in a single over. The match in which he hogged all the limelight was against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).
Also Read: SRH Release List After IPL 2026- Players Set To Be Out Before IPL 2027
Overall, Kamindu Mendis played five IPL matches, all for SRH. All his matches were in 2025, scoring 92 runs and picking up two wickets.
Kamindu Mendis LPL Teams
Before playing for Colombo Kaps, Kamindu Mendis played for Kandy Falcons (also known as B-Love Kandy and Kandy Royals). He began his LPL career in 2020/21, and has played 43 matches since then. He joined Colombo Kaps just before LPL 2026.
Overall, Kamindu has 877 runs, and also has eight wickets in the competition.
Apart from that, Kamindu, 27-year-old, plays for MI Emirates in International League T20 (ILT20).
Also Read: SA20 2027 Schedule Announced, Set To Start From January 17
