• Source:JND

IPL 2026: Kolkata Knight Riders face another setback ahead of IPL 2026, as Cricbuzz reports pacer Aakash Deep will miss the tournament due to an undisclosed injury.

The report revealed that Deep, who was roped in by KKR for a whopping Rs 1 crore at the IPL auction last year, didn't join the pre-season training camp that started in Kolkata earlier this week. He is currently in rehab at the NCA in Bengaluru, but there is no official timeline for when he is expected to recover.

“Unfortunately, he is out of the IPL, ruled out for the season," a KKR official told Cricbuzz.

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Deep is the second Indian pacer, after Harshit Rana, who was ruled out before the tournament began. Rana sustained a knee injury during a warm-up match in the T20 World Cup, underwent surgery, and attended the BCCI Naman Awards on a clutch.

Head coach Abhishek Nayar confirmed Rana's absence during a press conference. Additionally, Sri Lanka's Matheesha Pathirana, bought for Rs 18 crore, will miss the initial matches and join next month.

DJ Bravo, KKR's mentor, spoke about their depleted bowling attack and said they have enough firepower to overcome it.

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“In any tournament, once you lose your key bowlers, it’s not something you can plan for but have to accept. The good thing at the moment, especially in Indian cricket, is the depth. They have some guys who can definitely fill the spots. There are Umran Malik and Kartik Tyagi, who have represented India at some point and played in the IPL. They’re still young and exciting talents. So, I’m excited to work with this group of fast bowlers. We have the best spin duo in the competition. So, from a bowling perspective, we will be fine. Vaibhav (Arora) had a fantastic season last year and has been the leader of the attack. We’ve lost some key players, but we feel comfortable knowing that we have what it takes to replace those guys," Bravo told reporters in the press conference.


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