Chennai Super Kings suffered a blow as its Sri Lankan pacer Matheesha Pathirana is nursing a hamstring injury and will be returning home for further recovery, the franchise confirmed on Sunday.

The right-arm pacer featured in six matches in the ongoing Indian Premier League, claiming 13 wickets at an economy of 7.68, including a four-wicket haul. The youngster was the team’s second-highest wicket-taker after Mustafizur Rahman (14), grabbing 13 wickets in six matches. With Mustafizur Rahman joining the Bangladesh national team and Deepak Chahar injured, Pathirana’s injury concerns add to CSK’s woes.

Earlier, Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana, CSK’s only two players from Sri Lanka, had returned home for their visa work ahead of the T20 World Cup. According to reports in the local media, the Sri Lankan Cricket Board had asked the duo to come back to the country to get their documentation sorted for the application of their visa for the USA and the West Indies.

However, the team management, had so far, remained tight-lipped on the pacer’s injury concerns. In fact, addressing the media on the eve of the clash against Punjab Kings, the team’s bowling coach Eric Simons did not clarify whether the Sri Lankan pacers would be available for the remainder of the tournament.

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