Matheesha Pathirana will finally link up with Kolkata Knight Riders next week after Sri Lanka Cricket signed off the pace bowler’s no-objection certificate. The 23-year-old quick passed a mandatory fitness test in Colombo on Thursday and is expected in India on 17 April, the day KKR face Gujarat Titans. He is likely to be considered for selection two nights later, when Rajasthan Royals visit Eden Gardens.
“We put him through the usual return-to-play protocols – strength work, sprint tests, a short match simulation – and he ticked every box,” an SLC medical officer said. “There’s always a small risk when a player comes straight back into tournament cricket, but the data tells us he’s ready.”
Pathirana has not bowled competitively since straining a calf during last winter’s T20 World Cup. The delay has hurt KKR, who paid INR 18 crore for him at the auction and then lost Harshit Rana and Akash Deep to injuries of their own. Mustafizur Rahman was released on BCCI instructions, while Varun Chakravarthy’s form has tailed off badly. Unsurprisingly the Knight Riders sit bottom of the table, winless after three defeats and one wash-out.
Head coach Chandrakant Pandit did not hide his relief. “We’ve been light on death-overs options,” he said. “Matheesha gives us pace at the end and a slingy angle that’s hard to line up. The plan is to ease him in – we won’t throw him 24 balls straight away – but having him around lifts the whole group.”
KKR’s problems have been obvious. They leaked 220 against Mumbai Indians in the opener, then went for 65 runs too many versus Sunrisers Hyderabad, before letting a strong position slip in Lucknow. “You can’t keep asking the batters to post 200-plus every night,” former India seamer Irfan Pathan noted on television last night. “Pathirana hits the blockhole naturally, and because his release point is so low he’s hard to scoop.”
SLC’s decision contrasts with the news on Wanindu Hasaranga, ruled out of the entire IPL after failing his own fitness assessment earlier in the week. For Pathirana, though, the green light has finally come. “Grateful for all the support during rehab,” he wrote on Instagram. “Can’t wait to join the boys.” Knight Riders fans will echo the sentiment; their season may yet have time to turn.
