NEW DELHI: Chennai Super Kings' pacer Matheesha Pathirana's involvement in the current IPL season has abruptly ended as he heads back to Sri Lanka to recover from a hamstring injury.
The right-arm fast bowler played in six matches this IPL season, taking 13 wickets with an economy rate of 7.68.
Pathirana's last game for CSK was during their 78-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad, where he bowled two overs and dismissed Aiden Markram and Heinrich Klaasen.
He missed the match against Punjab Kings in Chennai on May 1, with England pacer Richard Gleeson stepping in as his replacement.
Pathirana's absence is a significant blow to CSK, as their bowling options have sharply decreased in recent days.
On Monday, the Sri Lankan speedster shared a series of photos with MS Dhoni and other CSK teammates, accompanied by an emotional caption.
"A hard goodbye with my only wish to see the 2024 IPL champion trophy in CSK’s room soon! Grateful to the CSK team for all the blessings and love from Chennai. - #matheeshapathirana," Pathirana wrote.
Pace-bowling all-rounder Deepak Chahar is also expected to miss the remainder of the IPL after sustaining a niggle during the match against Punjab at Chepauk.
Chahar left the field after bowling just two deliveries, and Shardul Thakur completed the over in his place.
CSK will also be without Sri Lankan spinner Maheesh Theekshana for at least a few more matches, as he is set to return to Sri Lanka to complete his USA visa process ahead of next month's T20 World Cup in the Americas.
Bangladesh pacer Mustafizur Rahman's IPL tenure also concluded after the last match against PBKS, as he has joined the national team for the home T20I series against Zimbabwe.
