Gujarat Titans won the toss and chose to bowl first against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens, with Shubman Gill expecting the surface to be slightly sticky early before getting better for batting later. KKR, playing their 100th IPL match at Eden Gardens, are in a must-win situation and welcomed back Varun Chakravarthy after a toe injury.
But two notable names missing from their starting XI were Matheesha Pathirana and Rovman Powell. The important detail is that neither has been completely ruled out of the match. Both are on KKR’s Impact Player bench, meaning they can still be used depending on the game situation.
KKR vs GT: Matheesha Pathirana kept on impact bench after injury concerns
Matheesha Pathirana is not in KKR’s starting XI because the franchise appears to be managing him carefully after an injury-hit season. The Sri Lankan pacer has not played a game yet in IPL 2026 and has been working his way back after fitness issues.
Pathirana starts on the Impact Player bench, which suggests KKR are keeping him available as a situational option rather than rushing him straight into the XI. If the match demands a death-bowling specialist later, especially under lights at Eden Gardens, he could still be brought in.
This is also a high-pressure game for KKR. They ideally need to win all their remaining matches to keep their slim playoff hopes alive, so the management may not want to gamble on Pathirana from ball one unless they are fully confident about his workload.
KKR vs GT: Rovman Powell misses out due to overseas balance
Rovman Powell’s absence is more tactical than fitness-related. KKR started with only three overseas players: Finn Allen, Cameron Green and Sunil Narine. That leaves them room to bring in either Powell or Pathirana as the Impact Player later.
Because KKR are batting first, they have gone with more Indian batting and bowling flexibility in the starting XI, including Manish Pandey, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Anukul Roy, Saurabh Dubey and Kartik Tyagi. Powell, a power-hitter, remains on the bench as a possible batting impact option if KKR need extra finishing muscle.
If KKR lose early wickets or want a late-innings hitter, Powell is the obvious option. If they post a total and need extra bowling at the death, Pathirana becomes the stronger Impact choice. That is the tactical advantage of keeping both available.
Also READ: KKR vs GT Pitch Report: Eden Gardens playing conditions, stats and records Ahead of IPL 2026 Match 60
KKR vs GT Playing XIs
Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Ajinkya Rahane(c), Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi(w), Cameron Green, Manish Pandey, Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Anukul Roy, Varun Chakaravarthy, Saurabh Dubey, Kartik Tyagi.
Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Nishant Sindhu, Washington Sundar, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj
KKR vs GT Impact Players
Gujarat Titans Impact Subs: Prasidh Krishna, Rahul Tewatia, Anuj Rawat, Kumar Kushagra, Glenn Phillips
Kolkata Knight Riders Impact subs: Rovman Powell, Ramandeep Singh, Tejasvi Dahiya, Matheesha Pathirana, Vaibhav Arora
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