Kolkata Knight Riders were one of the biggest spenders during the IPL 2026 Auctions, as they had the biggest purse of INR 64.3 crores going into the auctions. Kolkata Knight Riders did not disappoint and were one of the first teams to pick the two most expensive players of the day. Cameron Green went home with a price tag of INR 25.2 crores while Matheesha Pathirana was picked by KKR after bidding off Delhi Capitals and Chennai Super Kings at INR 18 crores. Kolkata Knight Riders ended the auctions by picking Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman at INR 9.2 crores.
There is, however, a slight complication in this regard. Mustafizur Rahman will not be available for the entire period of this season as well. According to the report published in India Today, the Left-arm pacer is expected to miss April 16 to 23’s matches as Bangladesh are scheduled to tour NZ in an ODI and T20I series; although the fixtures are pending confirmation.
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Although it is a brief absence, KKR will not be too bothered about it. Mustafizur is likely to be available for most of the tournament. Mustafizur is a regular in the T20I side but not a confirmed contributor to the ODIs. Because of this, the Bangladesh Cricket Board will likely provide him with a No Objection Certificate – partially, in order to allow him to head back to India from the T20Is but not participate in the ODIs.
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It was a historic buy at the auction for the player. Mustafizur has broken his own records to emerge the most expensive Bangladeshi player in the IPL. He has now sold for ₹9.2 crores. Earlier, Mashrafe Mortaza, Shakib Al Hasan, and Litton Das were the three KKR players from the country.
He has played a total of 60 matches in his IPL career, picking 65 wickets. He has played for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Chennai Super Kings, and Delhi Capitals before joining KKR. He also possesses some considerable IPL experience with these teams.