IPL 2026: Narine available for LSG clash, Varun in doubt due to injury

Kolkata (West Bengal) [India], April 8 (ANI): Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will receive a massive boost in their spin attack as Sunil Narine, their marquee player, has recovered from the illness which forced him to sit out for the washed-out match against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Monday.

Chakravarthy, their second spinner, is in doubt for Thursday's clash against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) due to an injury to his left hand, which also caused him to miss the PBKS clash. Varun's hand was covered with tape as he sat in the dugout, and there is no timeline set for his return. He had sustained the injury during the clash against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) last week, as per ESPNCricinfo.

As per KKR management, Narine faced an "abdominal issue" which kept him away from the PBKS clash, making that game the first instance since the 2019 edition that both spinners did not feature in the playing XI.

Narine resumed his practice on Tuesday and is set to boost the inexperienced KKR bowling attack, which is down due to injuries and player unavailability. Anukul Roy, the left-armer, was the sole spinner to feature for KKR against PBKS.

Varun has been wicketless and expensive in both of the matches, going for 0/48 against the Mumbai Indians (MI) in four overs and being belted for 31 runs in two overs against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). The bowler has been struggling with form since the Super Eight stage of the T20 World Cup. Starting off with nine wickets in four group stage matches, his form tapered off later on, taking just five wickets in five matches from the Super Eight opener to the final against New Zealand and leaking plenty of runs.

Narine has fared better though, taking 1/30 in four overs against MI, while going for 0/39 in four overs against SRH.

KKR lost both their games against MI and SRH, and just a point after a washout against PBKS, have left them at the eighth spot in the table. (ANI)