Matheesha Pathirana, the Sri Lankan speedster, has been highly in demand ever since he was released by the Chennai Super Kings. As per the latest reports, the unconventional pacer had a new bidder within a week after he was released by the Super Kings.
The Chennai Super Kings had one of their worst seasons in the history of the IPL, as they finished last on the IPL 2025 points table. The CSK management would have hence cited releasing most of their former players and bringing in some new faces in the mini-auction to improve their chances.
They not only let go of veteran all-rounder Ravindra Jadeja, but also parted ways with Sri Lankan fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana. The pacer came into CSK and was trained and slowly became an expert paceman under MS Dhoni’s supervision and guidance.
Matheesha Pathirana gets a new franchise a week after he departed from CSK
Pathirana parted ways with his former franchise and was released into the players’ pool for the mini-auction, which has been scheduled for the 16th of December. According to the latest reports suggested by Rohit Juglan, the Punjab Kings have emerged as the frontrunner side for the mega-auction.
He has further reported that before Pathirana was released by CSK, a total of three different franchises were making offers to have his services. They had the Rajasthan Royals, who made the trade offer; they had LSG, and lastly, they had the runners-up from the previous season, the Punjab Kings.
As the Punjab Kings required a death overs specialist seamer, Pathirana would be a right fit; however, a trade between Marcus Stoinis and Matheesha Pathirana was offered, while Juglan mentions he is unaware as to which party initiated the offer.
KKR might also be in the quest for an overseas pacer
Alongside the Punjab Kings, another franchise that would be desperately needing a death overs bowler and especially has the spot of an overseas seamer left in the XI, is the Kolkata Knight Riders.
They released many of the big-budget players, like Anrich Nortje, Venkatesh Iyer, Quinton de Kock and Andre Russell, to boost their purses ahead of the mini-auction. Hence, KKR not only needs someone like Pathirana, but they can also afford him over the Punjab Kings.
Punjab Kings would have to fit in many players, as they need to rebuild their middle order after having released the likes of Josh Inglis and Glenn Maxwell. As of now, these two franchises remain the front-runners for the CSK star.
Matheesha Pathirana’s IPL Stats
Having made his IPL debut in 2022, he has played four seasons for the Chennai Super Kings. Matheesha Pathirana was CSK’s go-to man for a wicket in the death in the 2024 and 2025 seasons.
Playing just 2 games in his first season for CSK, he came to the limelight due to his unorthodox style of bowling, his round-arm action, high release and his yorkers, which went on to get better with time.
Hailing from the land of Lasith Malinga, the pacer has picked 47 wickets in 32 IPL matches and averages a good 21.62 in his career. With a slightly higher economy, he has raw pace and when in form, his accuracy makes him unplayable.