New Delhi: Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Wednesday, the Indian fast bowler Navdeep Saini As a replacement for the injured Harshit Rana.Saini has played 2 Tests, 8 ODIs and 11 T20Is for India.There was TimeofIndia.com First to report that Harshit has been ruled out for the season due to a knee injury that he sustained before the T20 World Cup.
Later, Harshit Rana was seen on crutches at the BCCI Naman Awards.Rana, who suffered a strain on his right knee during India’s T20 World Cup warm-up match against South Africa, is currently undergoing rehabilitation.The fast bowler was pulled up after just one over in the game and was subsequently ruled out of the T20 World Cup after undergoing surgery. He was replaced by Mohammad Siraj, who played one match (against USA) during India’s title-winning campaign.KKR are facing a number of fitness concerns. Sri Lanka pacer Muttisha Pathirana is nursing a calf strain during the T20 World Cup, which was initially not expected to affect his IPL availability.KKR are also without left-arm fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman after the BCCI directed the release of the Bangladeshi player amid strained geopolitical ties between India and Bangladesh earlier this year.The franchise has since signed a quick deal with Zimbabwe. Blessings of Mudarbani as an alternative. Mazarbani opted for his Pakistan Super League stint with Islamabad United as he is set to join the squad here on Tuesday.KKR’s other pace options include Vibhu Arora, Saurabh Dubey (coming in as a replacement for Akash Deep), Imran Malik, Karthik Tyagi, and all-rounders Cameron Green and Ramandeep Singh.KKR will open their campaign against Mumbai Indians on March 29 before hosting Sunrisers Hyderabad, Punjab Kings and Lucknow Supergiants in the opening leg of the tournament.
