"It's a waiting game at the moment": KKR assistant coach Shane Watson on Matheesha Pathirana's availability

KKR head coach Abhishek Nayar had confirmed earlier that Pathirana is set to miss the early stages of the IPL as he will be available only from mid-April, owing to a calf strain, for which the pacer is undergoing rehab with the Sri Lanka Cricket. Notably, Pathirana was snapped up by KKR for Rs 18 crore in the IPL 2026 auction.

Speaking at the pre-match conference ahead of their IPL 2026 opener against the Mumbai Indians on March 29, Shane Watson said that the team is playing the waiting game regarding Pathirana's availability, emphasising that the team is coordinating with Sri Lanka Cricket to ensure he arrives fit and will not be rushed back prematurely.

"With Pathirana, obviously, it's a waiting game at the moment. And we're being guided by the Sri Lanka Cricket. And we are just doing everything we can to get him over here as soon as possible. Because of the calibre of support, the support staff, and the medical staff that we've got here at KKR. We've got the same interests as Sri Lankan Cricket as well. We want Pathirana to be here. We want him to be fit. We certainly would never push him any earlier than he needs to," Watson said.

Shane Watson stressed that KKR does not want to rush Pathirana back too soon and risk further injury, adding that the team hopes he can join soon and begin integrating, especially since he was a top priority in the auction.

"The last thing that we want as KKR is him playing the first game and trying to come back too early and breaking as well. So we just hope that sooner rather than later, he's able to come over here and we can really start the integration process. Bringing him into KKR, obviously, he was one of our number one, one of our priorities in the auction to be able to get Patirana," he added. (ANI)