Irfan Pathan lauds KKR's bowling, calling it 'well-rounded' after they acquired Matheesha Pathirana for Rs 18 crore in the IPL 2026 auction. Pathan believes the Sri Lankan pacer completes their attack for all phases of a T20 match.
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan believes Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) now possess a well-rounded bowling attack across all phases of a T20 innings following the addition of Sri Lankan fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana to their squad. Sharing his assessment of KKR's bowling line-up, Pathan said on his official X handle that the franchise has strengthened its ability to control games from start to finish. "Now that Matheesha Pathirana has come into KKR, they have covered all phases of the 20 overs in their bowling," he said.
Pathan's Breakdown of KKR's Bowling Attack
Pathan broke down how the bowlers fit into different phases of the innings, adding, "Harshit (Rana) - Powerplay, Death; Vaibhav (Arora) - Powerplay; (Cameron) Green - Middle overs, HTD; Pathirana - Middle overs, Death; Varun (Chakravarthy) - Powerplay, Middle; Sunil (Narine) - Middle overs."
https://x.com/IrfanPathan/status/2000884857908707414?s=20
Pathirana's Rs 18 Crore Auction Deal
Sri Lanka speedster Matheesha Pathirana was sold to Kolkata Knight Riders for a whopping Rs 18 crore during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction on Tuesday.
Delhi Capitals (DC) opened the bidding for Sri Lankan speedster, and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) joined the fray. Bidding intensified between LSG and DC as Pathirana's bid rose to Rs 10.4 crore. When the bid stood at Rs 15.8 crore, KKR came in at Rs 16 crore, quickly raised it to Rs 18 crore, and ultimately stole the deal. (ANI)
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