On Saturday, the IPL 2026 retention list was made public, and it was inevitable that one of the greatest shocks would be the departure of Matheesha Pathirana from the Chennai Super Kings. The Sri Lankan fast bowler was included in the CSK retention list for the 2025 mega auction for INR 13 crore. However, after a disappointing year, they decided to part ways with him.
Pathirana, a 22-year-old player, was able to claim 13 wickets through his 12 matches in the previous season, but he was very expensive as his bowling rate was 10.13. His performance in international cricket has been relatively poor as he has been struggling with the adjustment of his bowling technique in addition to having already made changes to it. Yet, he still has the potential to develop into a world-class player given his age and current skills. This means that the franchises will go after him aggressively in the IPL 2026 auction.
The IPL 2026 retention list may be out, but teams will still be able to make their choices quite easily as they will have a good idea of their strategy. We will show you three teams that will seek to acquire Pathirana in the auction soon.
Top IPL Teams Likely to Target Matheesha Pathirana in The 2026 Auction
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR)
The 2026 Kolkata Knight Riders retention list showed no mercy to a few of the top players, the likes of which will not be missed no more than that of Andre Russell and Venkatesh Iyer who were released. This has left the biggest auction purse of INR 64.3 crore to them. Moreover, having parted with Anrich Nortje and Spencer Johnson, KKR is vying with foreign pacers for their roster.
The very next thing is that KKR has to find the leader of their bowling attack, and that is going to be Pathirana with Harshit Rana covering him. Money should not be a problem for KKR, no other team will have that kind of voting power.
Chennai Super Kings (CSK)
The five-time winners may have allowed Pathirana to join the other auction candidates, but it is very possible that they will still incorporate him in their auction tactics. CSK is the type of franchise that enjoys being with their players for the long term and often does not let them go.
After the CSK retention list for 2026 was disclosed, the team was confirmed to have a second-highest remaining budget of INR 43.4 crores. This proposed release of Pathirana might be an attempt to do a contract negotiation with him at the time of the auction. It is quite likely that CSK will be present to bid for him at the IPL 2026 auction.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) are positioned with the third-highest budget of INR 25.5 crores while needing to fill only a couple of gaps. The SRH retention list 2026 consists of a very strong batting line-up even after the trade of Mohammed Shami and they have quite a few pace bowlers to choose from.
However, Pat Cummins and Brydon Carse’s injuries have made it necessary for SRH to get another foreign pace bowler to rely on. They are likely to fight in the IPL 2026 auction for the fast bowler.
