The Kolkata Knight Riders have announced the signing of Saurabh Dubey as a replacement for the injured Akash Deep. Dubey will join the KKR camp in preparation for the IPL 2026.
Saurabh Dubey (Pic: KKR)
The Kolkata Knight Riders have announced the signing of Saurabh Dubey as a replacement for the injured Akash Deep. Dubey will join the KKR camp in preparation for the IPL 2026. The Vidarbha pacer was part of the Sunrisers Hyderabad previously but has not made his IPL debut.
KKR's injury list keeps growing as Akash Deep's injury is the latest set-back for the 3 time champions. Harshit Rana is another Indian pacer ruled out of the tournament due to an injury. With Matheesha Pathirana yet to receive NOC from the Sri Lankan board, KKR's bowling options are slim.
Akash Deep will miss the tournament due to a lumbar stress injury and will be under the care of the Board of Control for Cricket in India's medical team at the Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru.
Dubey was unsold in the mini-auction last December in Abu Dhabi at a base price of Rs 30 Lakh. The pacer was earlier signed by SRH in 2022, but an injury cut short his stint with the Hyderabad-based team.
Dubey last participated in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with Vidarbha during the 2023–2024 season. He has previously played in four Vijay Hazare Trophy games for the state team during the 2020–21 campaign.
KKR are yet to announce a replacement for Harshit Rana despite holding trials for several pacers. However, the franchise has moved quickly to replace Akash Deep, naming Saurabh Dubey in the squad. The left-arm pacer will join KKR for Rs 30 lakh.
KKR are set to miss their main pacers due to injuries and suspension. Earlier, the Kolkata-based franchise announced Blessing Muzarabani as a replacement for Mustafizur Rahman, who they had earlier signed for big money at the auction. Now with Harshit Rana and Akash Deep out, and Pathirana's participation still in doubt, KKR could struggle with their bowling.
KKR Squad for IPL 2026:
Ajinkya Rahane (c), Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, Cameron Green, Matheesha Pathirana, Rachin Ravindra, Finn Allen, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh, Manish Pandey, Rahul Tripathi, Umran Malik, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi, Saurabh Dubey, Rovman Powell, Anukul Roy, Tim Seifert, Tejasvi Singh, Prashant Solanki, Daksh Kamra, Sarthak Ranjan, Blessing Muzarabani.
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