Why are Varun Chakravarthy, Sunil Narine not playing today's KKR vs PBKS match?

Kolkata Knight Riders have won the toss and chosen to bat first against Punjab Kings in Match 12 of IPL 2026 at Eden Gardens.

KKR vs PBKS: Here's what Ajinkya Rahane and Shreyas Iyer at the toss

Ajinkya Rahane made the call on a surface he described as dry and good for batting, with slightly less grass cover than expected. "It's all about having that belief and confidence. It's about winning those small moments. We are confident," he said, words that carry extra weight for a side that has lost both of its opening fixtures and is desperate to open its account at home tonight.

Shreyas Iyer, returning to Eden Gardens as an opponent, was relaxed about being asked to field first. "Not at all, I was supposed to bowl as well. So kind of happy with the decision he took," he said with a smile. Punjab Kings arrive in Kolkata unbeaten in two matches, with wins against Gujarat Titans and CSK already on the board, and are chasing a third consecutive victory to consolidate their position at the top of the table.

KKR vs PBKS: Reason behind Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine's absence

KKR have been forced into two changes from the side that lost heavily to SRH. Varun Chakravarthy, who injured himself taking a catch in the last match, and Sunil Narine, who is unwell, are both unavailable.

Rovman Powell and Navdeep Saini come in as replacements. The absence of both Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine, their two most reliable bowling options, is a significant blow for a side whose bowling has already been described as decimated by injuries this season.

Blessing Muzarabani, who took four wickets against SRH, remains in the side and will be expected to shoulder the pace bowling burden alongside Vaibhav Arora and Kartik Tyagi.

PBKS are unchanged, the same XI that beat CSK in Chennai last time out, with Shreyas Iyer leading a batting lineup that has looked sharp and clinical in both games so far.

Cooper Connolly's unbeaten 72 on debut against GT and Iyer's own fifty against CSK have set the tone. Priyansh Arya's explosive cameo in that chase, 39 off 11 balls, showed the kind of depth Punjab have in their batting order.

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KKR vs PBKS: Playing XIs

KKR: Finn Allen, Ajinkya Rahane (c), Cameron Green, Angkrish Raghuvanshi (wk), Rovman Powell, Rinku Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Anukul Roy, Navdeep Saini, Vaibhav Arora, Kartik Tyagi.

PBKS: Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Cooper Connolly, Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Marco Jansen, Xavier Bartlett, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.

KKR vs PBKS: Impact players

PBKS Impact subs: Priyansh Arya, Suryansh Shedge, Vishnu Vinod, Pravin Dubey, Harpreet Brar

KKR Impact subs: Blessing Muzarabani, Manish Pandey, Tejasvi Singh, Rahul Tripathi, Saurabh Dubey

KKR vs PBKS: What the match context demands

KKR are currently at the bottom of the table with zero points from two games and a net run rate of -1.964. Punjab sit at the top with four points and a healthy NRR of +0.637.

The pressure on KKR tonight could not be more acute, a third consecutive defeat at their home ground would make their path to the playoffs significantly harder.

The pitch is expected to assist spinners as the game progresses, which makes the absence of Varun Chakravarthy and Sunil Narine even more painful for Rahane. Punjab, meanwhile, have momentum, form and the luxury of playing without pressure. Eden Gardens tonight belongs to KKR's supporters and they will need every decibel of that support.

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