Chennai Super Kings have decided to let go of the Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana before the IPL 2026 auction. The reasoning behind the decision is quite simple, the pacer was not at all impressive in IPL 2025 and he was also plagued with injuries. It has been reported that CSK who was so sure of his talent and retained the pacer at a gigantic price of Rs 13 crore before the mega auction last year have finally accepted to lose him.
Why is CSK releasing Matheesha Pathirana?
According to ESPNCricinfo, CSK is reportedly considering releasing Pathirana, and this has been made known just before the retention deadline – 3 PM on November 15. The report mentions that CSK will allow themselves to buyback the Sri Lankan pacer later in the IPL 2026 mini-auction, maybe for a reduced price. The auction is set to be held in Abu Dhabi on December 16. It is also anticipated that the five-time champions will release the New Zealand players Devon Conway and Rachin Ravindra.
Pathirana’s performance in IPL 2025 was quite poor as he could take only 13 wickets in 12 matches with an economy rate of over 10. Early in the season, CSK head coach Stephen Fleming had raised doubts over the amount of impact the pacer could have and had blamed the Sri Lanka Cricket board for causing his downfall by messing with his bowling action leading to the result.
Pathirana got the IPL ticket with CSK in 2022. He had his best year in 2023, the very year the team claimed its 5th title, when he took 19 wickets in 12 games. In the IPL 2024 season, he had to quit the tournament midway after playing just 6 games.
If CSK takes the step of releasing Pathirana, it will mean going into the IPL 2026 auction with a larger budget. Apart from that, the team has also swapped Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran for Rajasthan Royals’ keeper-batter Sanju Samson.
Devon Conway also bids adieu to the yellow army.
On the other hand, the player Devon Conway has made the proclamation that he is no longer a part of the Chennai Super Kings team, thus the three-year experience with the franchise is over for him. He had been a part of CSK already before the start of the 2022 season and was paid ₹1 crore for his services. In the year 2023, he reached the peak of his performance when the Kiwi player made 672 runs in 16 matches and turned out to be one of the key in the success of CSK’s fifth IPL title win.
A thumb injury, nonetheless, ruled him out for the entire IPL 2024 season, but CSK nevertheless kept him in their roster for the amount of ₹6.25 crore.
But the situation didn’t unfold as anticipated, and Conway could only participate in six games in 2025, when he made a total of 156 runs. Just before the ultimatum, Conway posted pictures on social media from his CSK days, thanking the team, and the fans for their support and memories.
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