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Sri Lanka national cricket team’s star opener Pathum Nissanka has been ruled out of the upcoming Lanka Premier League 2026 (LPL 2026). Pathum Nissanka’s main priority is to remain available for national duty, for which he decided to focus on his recovery from a long-standing hand injury.
Nissanka has been playing cricket almost non-stop for the past year, juggling international matches and franchise commitments including IPL 2026. The hectic schedule has started taking a toll on his body, and he has now decided to take a break from the sport to focus on recovery.
Big blow for LPL, Pathum Nissanka is out before the season
On June 1, Pathum Nissanka has decided to skip the upcoming Lanka Premier League 2026 (LPL 2026) starting from July 19. The star opener has taken this decision to focus on recovering from a long-standing injury and managing his workload better.
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Although Nissanka was not selected as a direct signing for the upcoming LPL 2026, he was available for selection. But it has now been confirmed that the Sri Lankan star will not take part in the tournament and will instead spend time on treatment and rehabilitation.
He wants to avoid the risk of any further injury. His management has made it clear that the main target is to get the batsman fully fit for Sri Lanka’s upcoming big series against India and England. He is going to undergo surgery on his hand in the first week of July.
“Our priority is to play for Sri Lanka, so we have decided to use this period to ensure that he fully recovers before the important series against India and England,” Pathum Nissanka’s manager, Asanka Wijewardena, was quoted as saying by the newswire.
Pathum Nissanka shines in IPL debut season for Delhi Capitals
Meanwhile, Pathum Nissanka had a strong debut season in IPL 2026 after being picked up by Delhi Capitals for ₹4 crore. The Sri Lankan opener left his mark at the top of the order with his fearless batting and gave a solid start to Delhi Capitals.
Nissanka scored 278 runs in 10 matches at an excellent strike rate of 158.86. He also scored two half-centuries and became the second-highest run-scorer for Delhi Capitals this season. His best innings came against Rajasthan Royals, where he scored 62 runs off just 33 balls.
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International Number of Pathum Nissanka
Nissanka, on the other hand, has now become one of the most reliable top-order batsmen for Sri Lanka across all three formats since making his international debut in 2021. In a short time, he has become a key player for Sri Lanka in Tests, ODIs and T20Is with consistent performances.
In Test cricket, Nissanka has played 18 matches and scored 1,305 runs at an average of 45.00, including 4 centuries and 7 half-centuries. He has played 77 ODIs so far and scored 2,920 runs at an average of 40.56, which included 7 centuries and 18 fifties.
In T20 Internationals, the explosive opening batsman has played 91 matches and scored 2,648 runs at a strike rate of 128.67. He has also scored 2 centuries and 19 fifties in the shortest format.
