Matheesha Pathirana is a young Sri Lankan right-arm fast bowler, nicknamed "Baby Malinga" for his unique, slinging action, known for his deadly yorkers and explosive pace, who recently made headlines by signing with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for a significant sum in the IPL 2026 auction, moving from his previous franchise, Chennai Super Kings (CSK). He's a key player for Sri Lanka in limited overs and has established himself as a formidable T20 bowler, with impressive stats in the IPL and international T20Is.
| Match | Format | Date | Runs | BF | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sri Lanka vs England · 3rd T20I | T20I | February 3, 2026 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Sri Lanka vs England · 1st T20I | T20I | January 30, 2026 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Sharjah Warriorz vs Dubai Capitals · Match 20 | T20 | December 19, 2025 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| SLC Blues vs SLC Greens · Match 1 | T20 | August 7, 2025 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 33.33 |
| Pretoria Capitals vs Joburg Super Kings · 24th Match | T20 | January 28, 2025 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 133.33 |
| New Zealand vs Sri Lanka · 2nd T20I | T20I | December 30, 2024 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Match | Format | Date | Over | M | R | W | NB | WD | ECO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia vs Sri Lanka · 30th Match, Group B | T20I | February 16, 2026 | 0.4 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7.50 |
| Sri Lanka vs Oman · 16th Match, Group B | T20I | February 12, 2026 | 3 | 0 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.67 |
| Sri Lanka vs Ireland · 6th Match, Group B | T20I | February 8, 2026 | 2.5 | 0 | 26 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 10.40 |
| Sri Lanka vs England · 3rd T20I | T20I | February 3, 2026 | 4 | 0 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 6.75 |
| Sri Lanka vs England · 2nd T20I | T20I | February 1, 2026 | 4 | 0 | 47 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 11.75 |
| Sri Lanka vs England · 1st T20I | T20I | January 30, 2026 | 4 | 0 | 18 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4.50 |
| Series | Format | Date | Runs | BF | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 | T20I | Feb 7, 2026 - Mar 8, 2026 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
| England tour of Sri Lanka 2026 | T20I | Jan 22, 2026 - Feb 3, 2026 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 40.00 |
| Pakistan tour of Sri Lanka 2026 | T20I | Jan 7, 2026 - Jan 11, 2026 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
| International League T20 2025 | T20 | Dec 2, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| Asia Cup 2025 | T20I | Sep 9, 2025 - Sep 28, 2025 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
| Sri Lanka tour of Zimbabwe 2025 | T20I | Aug 29, 2025 - Sep 7, 2025 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - |
| Series | Format | Date | Over | M | R | W | BBi | ECO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2026 | T20I | Feb 7, 2026 - Mar 8, 2026 | 6.3 | 0 | 40 | 2 | 2/26 | 6.15 |
| England tour of Sri Lanka 2026 | T20I | Jan 22, 2026 - Feb 3, 2026 | 12 | 0 | 92 | 5 | 2/27 | 7.67 |
| Pakistan tour of Sri Lanka 2026 | T20I | Jan 7, 2026 - Jan 11, 2026 | 3 | 0 | 34 | 2 | 2/34 | 11.33 |
| International League T20 2025 | T20 | Dec 2, 2025 - Jan 4, 2026 | 12 | 1 | 103 | 5 | 3/19 | 8.58 |
| Sri Lanka tour of Zimbabwe 2025 | T20I | Aug 29, 2025 - Sep 7, 2025 | 4 | 0 | 40 | 1 | 1/40 | 10.00 |
| SLC T20 League 2025 | T20 | Aug 7, 2025 - Aug 16, 2025 | 7 | 0 | 79 | 3 | 2/32 | 11.29 |
| Format | Matches | Innings | Runs | BF | HS | AVG | SR | Not Out | 4s | 6s | 50s | 100s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IPL | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Format | Matches | Innings | Overs | Balls | Runs | Wkts | AVG | Econ | SR | Bbi | Bbm | 4w | 5w | 10w |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| IPL | 18 | 18 | 63.5 | 383 | 593 | 26 | 22.81 | 9.34 | 14.73 | 4/28 | 4/28 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Match | Format | Date | Runs | BF | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kandy Falcons vs Colombo Strikers · Match 7 | T20 | July 6, 2024 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
International Debuts:
Last International Matches (as of late 2025):
That player is Matheesha Pathirana, who clocked 175kmph on the speedometer in a match against the U-19 cricket team of India.
Matheesha Pathirana is a Sri Lankan cricketer. He has been referred to as Baby Malinga, as he has modelled his bowling action after Lasith Malinga.
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IPL Debut & Key Moments
Career IPL Statistics (Up to 2025 Season)
