Sri Lanka fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana broke the record for the costliest player in the history of the Lanka Premier League (LPL) auction. Pathirana was sold for USD 120,000 after triggering a bidding war on Tuesday, May 21. Colombo Strikers bought the fast bowler, with a sling action, matching Galle Marvels’ bid with their Right To Match option.
In an interesting turn of events, the Dambulla franchise began the bidding at USD 70,000 after Matheesha Pahitrana entered the bidding at his base price of USD 50,000. However, Galle Marvels raised the stakes and took it to USD 100,000 straightaway. To avoid retention from Colombo Srikers, Galle even increased their own bid to USD 120,000 but their effort went in vain.
Colombo Strikers added firepower to their pace battery on Tuesday as they also roped in Bangladesh fast bowler Taskin Ahmed for USD 50,000. Colombo also signed Afghanistan and KKR opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz. Colombo had already retained the likes of Chamika Karunaratne, Thisara Perera, Sadeera Samarawickrama, Nipun Dhananjaya and oveseas stars Shadab Khan and Glenn Phillips.
Matheesha Pathirana’s price is nearly five times more than his Indian Premier League price. The Sri Lanka fast bowler played for the Super Kings, becoming an IPL star during his three-year stint with the 5-time champion. Pathirana was roped in by CSK for Rs 20 lakh as a replacement for New Zealand’s Adam Milne in 2022.
Matheesha Pathirana became one of the fan favourites at CSK and one of MS Dhoni’s favourite players in the Super Kings. The Sri Lankan pacer played a key role in CSK’s title triumph in 2023, picking up 19 wickets in 12 matches. Pathirana’s injury and his early return to Sri Lanka played a big role in CSK’s early exit in the 2024 season. Pathirana picked up 13 wickets in just 6 matches for the Super Kings, who finished fifth in the 10-team table.
Matheesha Pathirana will next be seen in action in the T20 World Cup as Sri Lanka have picked him in a power-packed squad for the tournament, starting June 1 in the USA and the West Indies.
