Varun Chakravarthy remains on the sideline. After missing out on the Kolkata Knight Riders’ (KKR) previous match of the ongoing Indian Premier League 2026 (IPL 2026), the team management put him again out of the line-up.
KKR captain Ajinkya Rahane at the toss informed that Varun Chakravarthy is not a part of their plans for tonight’s match against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
Why Varun Chakravarthy is not playing the KKR vs LSG match at the Eden Gardens?
After the toss, Rahane informed that the spinner is still recovering from the injury he received while taking the catch to dismiss the Sunrisers Hyderabad batter, Abhishek Sharma.
Your daily dose of cricket!
“Just one change – Sunil comes in place of Blessing, Varun is still recovering from his hand injury. When he (Green) is allowed to bowl, we will see him, the combination gets better, so Rovman Powell plays, when Cam Green bowls, then we have an extra bowler,” KKR captain, Ajinkya Rahane, said at the toss.
“We just want to, as a batting unit, watch the ball and react, rather than putting pressure on ourselves, trying to focus on a certain target, and then trying to achieve that. I think just being in the moment, trying to react and watch the ball,” he added further in his statement to explain the playing combination.
Ahead of the match, it was informed that Varun Chakravarthy joined the team for a practice session. But it was under the observation of the medical team. As he remains unavailable to play the match, West Indian middle-order batter Rovman Powell, who is known for power-hitting, holds a place in the playing combination.
Sunil Narine in, Varun Chakravarthy out from the playing XI vs LSG
Another spinner of the Kolkata Knight Riders, Sunil Narine, who also missed the team’s previous match, which was against the Punjab Kings at the Eden Gardens, returns to the playing eleven. Narine missed the previous match because of illness.
The match is highly crucial for the home team, as the Knights have yet to register their first win in the ongoing Indian Premier League 2026. The KKR vs PBKS match was called off due to heavy rain in Kolkata. Ahead of tonight’s match, there was pours across West Bengal. As of now, the match begins according to the scheduled time.
After winning the toss, Rishabh Pant, Lucknow Super Ginats captain, elected to bowl first.
KKR vs LSG Playing XIs:
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(w), Rinku Singh, Rovman Powell, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Sunil Narine, Navdeep Saini, Kartik Tyagi
Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Abdul Samad, Mukul Choudhary, Manimaran Siddharth, Avesh Khan, Mohammed Shami, Digvesh Singh Rathi, Prince Yadav
Read More: KKR vs LSG Impact Players Today: Toss Report, Playing XIs, Latest Updates IPL 2026 Match 15
