He has registered at a base price of INR 2 crore.
With the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 auction just around the corner, former Chennai Super Kings CSK star Matheesha Pathirana impressed with the ball for Sharjah Warriorz in the International League T20 ILT20 against Gulf Giants at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium.
During the second innings, Matheesha Pathirana picked up three wickets and conceded only 19 runs in his four overs. He came on to bowl in the fifth over and dismissed Rahmanullah Gurbaz. He then removed Matthew Forde in the 16th over before dismissing Moeen Ali, who was batting on 45, in the 18th over.
Pathirana finished with an excellent economy rate of 4.80. His spell helped Sharjah Warriorz restrict Gulf Giants to 163 for nine and win the match by 11 runs. Wasim Akram also picked up three wickets, while Dwaine Pretorius claimed two and Taskin Ahmed took one.
Earlier in the match, Sharjah Warriorz scored 174 for six in 20 overs. Tom Abell was the top scorer with 68 runs.
This performance came at the right time for Pathirana after he conceded 41 runs in his four overs in the previous match. Having played only two T20I matches this year and taken just one wicket while going at over 10 runs per over, this ILT20 spell would have given his confidence a timely boost.
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Pathirana has registered himself at a base price of INR 2 crore for the IPL 2026 auction. He was released by CSK on the retention deadline after a disappointing season with the ball, where he picked up 13 wickets in 12 matches at an economy rate of 10.13. Despite this, he is expected to attract big bids at the auction. His name is listed in the Set 4 under the fast bowlers 1 category, along with Anrich Nortje, Gerald Coetzee and Spencer Johnson.
Teams like Kolkata Knight Riders, who have released both their overseas pacers, and CSK, who currently have only Nathan Ellis among overseas fast bowlers, and are expected to have a big purse, could look to target him. Sunrisers Hyderabad might also bid for him as they currently have only Pat Cummins and Brydon Carse as overseas pacers in the squad.
Although Pathirana had a dip in form last season, he has shown his potential in the IPL, having taken 47 wickets in 32 matches so far.
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