Ranking KKR's 3 best buys of IPL 2026 Auction ft. Mustafizur Rahman

Three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) purchased 13 players at the IPL 2026 auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, December 16, with six of them being overseas cricketers. Having released a number of the prominent names, KKR went into the auction with the largest purse of ₹64.30 crore.

On expected lines, Kolkata went after Australian all-rounder Cameron Green and purchased him for a whopping ₹25.20 crore. Green is now the costliest overseas player in IPL history, although he will be paid only ₹18 crore as per IPL's 'maximum fee' rule that has been introduced for overseas cricketers.

Apart from Green, KKR also purchased Sri Lankan fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana for ₹18 crore and seasoned Bangladesh left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman for ₹9.20 crore. Rachin Ravindra (₹2 crore), Finn Allen (₹2 crore), Tim Seifert (₹1.5 crore) and Akash Deep (₹1 crore) were some of Kolkata's other prominent purchases at the IPL 2026 auction.

After buying 13 players to fill up their quota, KKR were left with a purse of ₹45 lakh. In this feature, we rank the franchise's three best buys at the IPL 2026 mini-auction in Abu Dhabi on Tuesday.

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#3 Matheesha Pathirana

Released by Chennai Super Kings (CSK), Sri Lankan fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana was purchased by KKR for a whopping ₹18 crore. While Pathirana was expected to be one of the biggest buys of the IPL 2026 auction, Kolkata might have ended up paying a bit more than expected for the fast bowler.

Pathirana played a crucial role in CSK's IPL 2023 triumph. The young pacer, guided by MS Dhoni, ended up claiming 19 wickets in 12 matches at an average of 19.52 and an economy rate of 8. He was in impressive form in IPL 2024 as well, claiming 13 wickets in six matches, before being ruled out due to injury. He was, however, released by CSK after an underwhelming IPL 2025 season.

The 22-year-old Sri Lankan cricketer is considered one of the most promising fast bowlers on the T20 circuit. If he gets it right, his yorkers can be unplayable. Pathirana recently starred with 3-19 for Sharjah Warriorz against Gulf Giants in the ILT20. KKR must look to tap his potential to the fullest in IPL 2026.

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#2 Cameron Green

Much before the IPL 2026 auction actually took place, cricket experts almost unanimously agreed that Australian all-rounder Cameron Green would be the biggest buy at the event. And that is exactly how the script played out as Green was purchased by KKR for a record ₹25.20 crore.

What the Aussie brings to the table is power-hitting at the top of the order and some crucial overs with the ball in hand. He is also an agile fielder, which makes him a great T20 package. If we look at Green's IPL record, he has shown glimpses of his potential in a short career. The right-handed batter smacked 100* off 47 balls for Mumbai Indians (MI) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in IPL 2023.

KKR should look to open the innings with Green and give him the best chance to take advantage of the powerplay. If he gets going, the Australian batter can be unstoppable. He has a strike rate of 160.30 in his T20I career after 21 matches and 151.07 in T20s overall after 63 games.

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#1 Mustafizur Rahman

Seasoned Bangladesh left-arm pacer Mustafizur Rahman beats Green in the race for being KKR's best buy at the IPL 2026 auction in Abu Dhabi. While he was purchased for a much lower pay (₹9.20 crore), Mustafizur can be as big a match winner as Green on his day. In fact, he is a proven performer and is one of the best exponents of the off-cutter, especially at the death.

If we talk about his IPL career, the 30-year-old has pretty impressive numbers. In 60 matches, he has claimed 65 wickets at an average of 28.44 and an economy rate of 8.13. Mustafizur joined Delhi Capitals (DC) as a replacement player for IPL 2025 and claimed four wickets in three matches. He could not have been retained even if DC wanted owing to the rules in place for temporary replacements.

Before joining Delhi, Mustafizur had impressed for CSK in IPL 2024, claiming 14 wickets in nine games. He could be expensive at times, but is a genuine wicket-taker, which should make him a big asset for KKR in IPL 2026.