Follow UsIt is not often that an IPL franchise ends up unearthing an international star out of thin air but Chennai Super Kings (CSK) did just that with Matheesha Pathirana. When CSK signed Pathirana as an injury replacement for Adam Milne in IPL 2022, the young Sri Lankan was an unknown commodity yet to make an appearance for Sri Lanka in international cricket.
Fast forward to 2025, Pathirana is one of the most lethal and sought-after death bowlers in T20 cricket. CSK rate him so highly that he was retained for INR 13 crore ahead of the mega auction.
So, how did the franchise end up unleashing this young superstar out of nowhere?
“It is all due to Lakshmi Narayanan, CSK’s video analyst who is also in charge of talent scouting,” CSK CEO Kasi Viswanathan said in a video posted by the franchise.
“He [Lakshmi] was looking at Pathirana in the T10 tournament in Abu Dhabi. Once he identified him, he said we should get Pathirana as a net bowler for CSK. Initially we could not get the approval from the Sri Lankan board but finally we were able to get him.”
Viswanathan revealed how Dhoni was instantly impressed by the skills of young Pathirana.
“MS Dhoni hadn’t previously seen Pathirana at all, but after watching him in the nets, MS felt that Pathirana had potential.”
Pathirana has since played 12 ODIs and 19 T20Is for Sri Lanka, and has also represented over a dozen sides in franchise cricket.