Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) speedster Harshit Rana has been ruled out of IPL 2026, according to a report in the Times of India. This will mean that Harshit will miss his second straight tournament, after being ruled out of the 2026 T20 World Cup due to an injury.
Harshit Rana had suffered a knee injury during India's T20 World Cup warm-up match against South Africa. He was replaced by Mohammed Siraj for the 2026 T20 World Cup that India won after they defeated New Zealand.
The report adds that KKR have not decided on a replacement just yet, and wants players like Umran Malik, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi and Akash Deep to make use of their opportunities.
An update on Harshit Rana
"Harshit Rana unfortunately will not be available but it gives the opportunity to other bowlers in the squad —Vaibhav, Umran, Kartik and Akash — to step up and grab the opportunity. No replacement has been decided yet," a source was quoted as saying by the Times of India.
Rana had an impactful IPL season in 2024 as he helped Kolkata Knight Riders clinch their third IPL title. He picked up 19 wickets from 13 matches at an economy rate of 9.08 in that season. His performance that season also paved way for making his international debut across all formats.
He maintained his consistency with another good IPL season in 2025, taking 15 wickets from 13 matches.
To date, the 24-year-old has played two Tests, 14 ODIs and nine T20Is, and has taken 39 wickets across the three formats combined. In the IPL, the New Delhi-born cricketer has played 33 matches and has taken 40 wickets at an economy rate of 9.51.
Earlier on Friday, Kolkata Knight Riders announced the signing of Zimbabwe pacer Blessing Muzarabani. His signing comes in the aftermath of Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman’s release in December 2025.
Kolkata Knight Riders will begin their IPL 2026 campaign with an away match against Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium on 29 March.
