Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) bowling woes continue to pile up as star pacer Harshit Rana has now been ruled out of IPL 2026 with an injury that kept him out of India’s victorious campaign in the ICC T20 World Cup.
India pacer Harshit Rana was ruled out of India’s ICC T20 World Cup squad after he picked up a massive injury during one of the warm-up fixtures ahead of the ICC tournament. He was replaced by the Indian pacer Mohammad Siraj, who went on to win the T20 World Cup for the second time in his career.
Star pacer Harshit Rana ruled out of IPL 2026; KKR to decide on replacement
Indian pacer Harshit Rana’s availability was already a massive concern for the 2024 Champions; now it has been all but confirmed that he will not be part of their squad for the upcoming edition of the competition. This has been confirmed by TOI reporter Sahil Malhotra’s reports.
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However, the Kolkata Knight Riders management is yet to make any formal announcement on his replacement and might consider their other Indian pacers to step in during this tough phase.
“Harshit Rana, unfortunately, will not be available, but it gives the opportunity to other bowlers in the squad—Vaibhav, Umran, Kartik and Akash—to step up and grab the opportunity. No replacement has been decided yet,” a source tracking developments told TimesofIndia.com.
Harshit Rana ruled out of IPL 2026; KKR yet to decide replacement. The franchise added Blessing Muzarabani to the squad today & hoping likes of Vaibhav, Akash, Umran and Kartik Tyagi will step up@pratyush93_raj with the important break for @toisports https://t.co/KSIHfsta7u
— Sahil Malhotra (@Sahil_Malhotra1) March 13, 2026
KKR pacers who can replace Harshit Rana in IPL 2026
The Kolkata Knight Riders’ fortune has been off when it comes to the bowling departments. The franchise, which went in with a huge load of money, acquired the likes of Matheesha Pathirana, the former CSK pacer with a whopping INR 18 crores; however, he was injured during the T20 World Cup and his participation has been uncertain.
Harshit Rana, who was retained as an uncapped player in 2025, picked up 15 wickets from 13 games in the 2025 season and after the year-round international experience, he would have been KKR’s new trump card in the pace department.
Since they have not decided on a replacement, they would possibly want anyone from Kartik Tyagi, Akash Deep, Umran Malik or Vaibhav Arora to step up and grab this opportunity to lead KKR’s pace campaign in this season.
KKR announce Blessing Muzarabani as Mustafizur Rahman’s replacement
The Kolkata Knight Riders faced massive backlash for having bought Mustafizur Rahman and had to release the Bangladesh paceman as per the BCCI’s directive. They then finally announced Blessing Muzarabani as his replacement after the T20 World Cup.
The 6 ft 8-inch-tall Zimbabwean pacer shocked all with his wicket-taking ability and economical spells, where he used the slower ball to the best of his ability. A common trait used by Mustafizur to deceive the batters.
Muzarabani, who earned his maiden IPL contract, might also get his debut this season, especially after the uncertainty over Pathirana’s availability.
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