Akash Deep ruled out of IPL 2026

The injuries continue to mount in the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) camp ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, as pacer Akash Deep has been ruled out of the tournament after failing to recover from a lower-back stress injury. The 29-year-old was bought by the franchise at his base price of INR 1 crore in the mini-auction in Abu Dhabi last year.

Akash Deep was not part of KKR’s preparatory camp, which began in Kolkata on March 18, and continued his rehabilitation at the BCCI's Centre of Excellence. The pacer’s injury makes matters worse for the three-time champions, who have already lost pacers Harshit Rana (the whole tournament) and Matheesha Pathirana (first few games) to injuries.

Rana picked up a knee injury in the lead-up to the 2026 T20 World Cup and missed the tournament in its entirety after being included in India’s squad, while Pathirana was taken off the field midway through his team’s clash against Australia at the global event. Additionally, Pathirana is yet to obtain the NOC from Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC),

KKR will also be without the services of Bangladesh’s left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman, who was released from the squad following a BCCI mandate earlier in the year. KKR subsequently roped in Zimbabwe pacer Blessing Muzarabani as his replacement. Despite Muzarabani’s addition, KKR’s bowling stocks have significantly depleted with the spate of injuries.

KKR head coach Abhishek Nayar suggested that the franchise was looking for further replacements.

"Hopefully soon, in a couple of days I think. Obviously Harshit is with the BCCI at the CoE. Once we get an update the medical team will communicate to us. We'll try to evaluate what we are picking before we make the announcement. (We) will take us a few more days, most probably before we leave for Mumbai," Nayar said during KKR's pre-season press conference on Friday, March 20.

KKR have Vaibhav Arora, Umran Malik and Kartik Tyagi as the Indian pace options, while there is Australia all-rounder Cameron Green who could be used for a few overs.

KKR will start their campaign against Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium on March 29.