Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will be without Akash Deep for IPL 2026 after the seamer failed to recover in time from a lower-back stress injury. He has been ruled out for the entire season and needs another three months to recover.
Akash Deep was not part of the franchise’s preparatory camp, having instead been at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence for rehabilitation. His absence adds to a growing list of concerns in KKR’s fast-bowling department.
Harshit Rana is all but ruled out, while Matheesha Pathirana is expected to miss parts of the first half of the tournament, leaving the side short on both availability and experience.
KKR had already made a change in the lead-up to the season, bringing in Blessing Muzarabani as a replacement for Mustafizur Rahman, but beyond that, their fast-bowling resources now appear thin.
Their Indian seam options currently comprise Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik and Kartik Tyagi, with Cameron Green providing a seam-bowling allrounder option.
The franchise is also conducting trials for an Indian fast bowler, with a replacement for Rana a priority as they look to rebuild a depleted pace attack ahead of the new season.