New Delhi: Manish Pandey joined Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma in an elite list by becoming only the third player after the legendary duo to feature in all 19 seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL) so far. Pandey played his first game for his team, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the IPL 2026.
The senior batter was included in the XI in place of Ramandeep Singh. The 36-year-old, who made his IPL debut in the inaugural edition of the league in 2008, is now among the only three players to have played at least one match in all 19 seasons of the competition. Pandey was picked by KKR at his base price of Rs 75 lakh at the IPL 2025 auction.
He was left warming the bench in the initial stage of the IPL 2026 season amid KKR’s struggles. On Sunday, the senior batter finally made the cut in the playing XI after being preferred over some of the youngsters like Sarthak Ranjan and Tejasvi Dahiya, who are part of KKR’s squad. It was Pandey’s first competitive game since the IPL 2025, where he played only three matches and scored 92 runs.
Players to have played in all 19 seasons of IPL:
1) Virat Kohli
2) Rohit Sharma
3) Manish Pandey
The legendary MS Dhoni can become the fourth player to join the elite list if he plays a game for the Chennai Super Kings in the ongoing IPL 2026. Dhoni, who is part of the CSK squad, has not featured in a game for the five-time champions yet due to a calf injury. The anticipation remains high among fans as Dhoni nears full fitness. However, it remains to be seen if the 44-year-old will return for CSK in the IPL 2026.