Kolkata Knight Riders were without their experienced spin duo of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakaravarthy during their clash against Punjab Kings. At the toss, captain Ajinkya Rahane clarified that Narine had been sidelined due to illness, while Varun picked up a finger injury in the previous encounter against Sunrisers Hyderabad.
In the build-up to their upcoming fixture against Lucknow Super Giants in Kolkata, the franchise shared further insights into the players’ conditions. It was revealed that Narine had been dealing with an abdominal issue, but the situation had improved, allowing him to return to training sessions with the squad ahead of the match.
Initially, there was limited information regarding Varun’s fitness, leaving uncertainty around his availability. However, a later update from the team confirmed that both players took part in training on the eve of the game. The franchise also disclosed that Varun had injured the little finger on his left hand during the SRH match. Despite resuming practice, his participation in the upcoming clash remains subject to a final fitness assessment.
“Sunil had fallen ill on the morning of our match vs PBKS, ‘cause of which he wasn’t a part of the XI. He has since been feeling better, and trained with the team both yesterday and today - batted and bowled. Varun had injured the little finger on his left hand while taking Abhishek’s catch in the match vs SRH. The medical team has been working closely with him. He bowled his full set at training today. About their participation in tomorrow’s game vs LSG - we will know tomorrow at toss,” KKR’s statement read.
KKR look for maiden win in IPL 2026
Kolkata lost both their matches against Mumbai Indians and Hyderabad in IPL 2026, while their third game against Punjab was called off due to rain. They have played some very poor cricket so far in the tournament and the criticism only amplified after Rahane opted to bat first against Punjab in cloudy weather. They have been tactically very poor and that is one area that the team needs to address soon.
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