IPL 2026: Why KKR's Chakravarthy, Narine missed PBKS match
What's the story
Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) missed star spinners Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine in their Indian Premier League 2026 match against Punjab Kings at Eden Gardens on Monday. KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane confirmed the absence of both players due to injury and illness, respectively. According to ESPNcricinfo, this marks the first time since April 2019 that both Chakravarthy and Narine have missed a match for KKR.
Player updates
Chakravarthy hurt himself; Narine unwell
Chakravarthy hurt himself while catching a ball in KKR's last match against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Meanwhile, Narine is unwell and unable to play. With their absence, KKR is left with only one specialist spinner, Anukul Roy. Besides, the Knight Riders brought in West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell and Indian pacer Navdeep Saini. The latter is making his debut for the franchise
Information
Rarity for KKR
As mentioned, this is the first time in seven years that both Chakravarthy and Narine are missing a match for KKR. The last such instance came back in April 2019.
Match
KKR's XI for the match
While announcing the team changes at the toss, KKR skipper Rahane highlighted the pitch's dry nature. Playing XI: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (captain), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wicket-keeper), Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, and Kartik Tyagi. Impact subs: Blessing Muzarabani, Manish Pandey, Tejasvi Singh, Rahul Tripathi, and Saurabh Dubey.