3 CSK players from the 2025 season who were signed by KKR at IPL 2026 Auction ft. Matheesha Pathirana

Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) share a great history in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The two sides have played in two finals, with the Knight Riders causing an upset in the 2012 edition to beat the defending champions by five wickets. But the Super Kings returned the favour in 2021, registering a 27-run victory over KKR in the final.

With the Super Kings releasing a handful of high-calibre players ahead of IPL 2026 auction, the Knight Riders seized the opportunity to sign them. The three-time champions will hope for them to come good in the 2026 edition after their disappointing outings earlier this year for CSK.

Below are 3 CSK players from IPL 2025 signed by KKR in the latest auction:

3) Matheesha Pathirana

Matheesha Pathirana celebrates a wicket. (Credits: Getty)

Sri Lanka pacer Matheesha Pathirana made his IPL debut in 2022, replacing the injured Adam Milne in the CSK squad. The right-arm pacer played a pivotal role in the Super Kings' title victory in 2023, picking up 19 wickets in 12 games at 19.53 and a promising economy rate of 8.01. Pathirana also bowled decently in IPL 2024, taking 13 wickets.

Although he added another 13 wickets to his tally in IPL 2025, the tearaway quick averaged 32.62 and leaked 10.14 runs per over. With the Super Kings parting ways with the 23-year-old, the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) splurged ₹18 crore on him to bolster a pace attack that has Harshit Rana, Mustafizur Rahman, Umran Malik, Vaibhav Arora and Akash Deep.

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2) Rahul Tripathi

Rahul Tripatthi. (Image Credits: Getty)

India's enterprising batter Rahul Tripathi has returned to the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for the first time since the 2021 edition. Although the 34-year-old has the power game and several shots in his book, he hasn't displayed consistency. Tripathi was released by the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) after managing only 55 runs in five games, striking at a woeful 96.9.

The veteran batter had one of his best seasons with the Knight Riders when he aggregated 397 runs in 17 games in 2021 and maintained a strike rate of 140.28. However, it remains to be seen if Tripathi gets an opportunity in a squad that has middle-order batters like Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Ramandeep Singh and Rinku Singh.

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1) Rachin Ravindra

Rachin Ravindra. (Image Credits: Getty)

Fresh off his heroics in the 2023 World Cup, New Zealand all-rounder Rachin Ravindra bagged his maiden IPL contract ahead of the 2024 edition. He aggregated only 222 runs in 10 matches but maintained a strike rate of 160.86. Hence, the 26-year-old was retained by the five-time champions ahead of the 2025 edition.

But his performances tanked significantly in the 2025 season, when he managed only 191 runs in eight games, averaging only 27.28. Ravindra had gone unsold initially but the Knight Riders signed him in the accelerated auction for his base price of ₹2 crore.