2026 Kandy Royals season
Lanka Premier League cricket team
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The 2026 season was Kandy Royals' sixth appearance in the Lanka Premier League (LPL). They were one of the five cricket teams that competed in the 2026 LPL. The team was captained by Angelo Mathews and coached by Chaminda Vaas. The team signed four players before the draft and sixteen players in the draft.
| 2026 season | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Kandy players during match 6 against Dambulla Sixers This file has an invalid non-free use claim and may be deleted after Friday, 4 September 2026. | |||
| Coach | Chaminda Vaas | ||
| Captain | Angelo Mathews | ||
| League stage | 4th place | ||
| Eliminator | Lost to Colombo Kaps | ||
| Most runs | Lahiru Udara (434)[1] | ||
| Most wickets | Nuwan Thushara (14)[2] | ||
| Most catches | Wanindu Hasaranga (7)[3] | ||
| Most wicket-keeping dismissals | Lahiru Udara (5)[4] | ||
| |||
Kandy Royals finished in fourth place in the league stage, and advanced to Eliminator in the playoffs; which they lost to Colombo Kaps. Lahiru Udara scored the most runs (434) while Nuwan Thushara took the most wickets (14) for Kandy in the 2026 season. Udara was also the highest run-scorer in the 2026 LPL.
Pre-season
The 2026 Lanka Premier League was the 6th edition of the Lanka Premier League (LPL), a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league, organised by the Sri Lanka Cricket (SLC). The tournament featured five teams competing in 24 matches from 17 July to 8 August 2026.[5][6][7]
Kandy Royals had previously won the LPL title once in the 2023 season.[8] The team finished in 3rd place in the previous season.[9] Ahead of the season, the franchise was purchased by Sandhya Ajjarapu, a US-based investor and entrepreneur, and was renamed to Kandy Royals from Kandy Falcons.[10]
Players' draft
In January 2026, the SLC announced that instead of an auction a players' draft would be held ahead of the 2026 season.[11] The players' draft was originally scheduled for 22 March 2026[12] but was postponed to 1 June 2026.[13] Each team was allowed to sign two overseas and two domestic players before the draft.[14][15] In the draft, each team was required to sign at least 14 players, with a maximum of 16 players under 10 categories, including 5 overseas players in 4 categories. One overseas player had to be from an associate country while two domestic players had to be under the age of 23.[16][17][18]
| Category | Domestic | Overseas |
|---|---|---|
| Icon | Wanindu Hasaranga | Moeen Ali |
| Star | Angelo Mathews | Vijay Shankar |
| Category | Domestic | Overseas |
|---|---|---|
| Platinum | Nuwan Thushara | Rahmanullah Gurbaz |
| Gold | Kusal Perera | Daniel Sams |
| Asitha Fernando | N/a | |
| Garuka Sanketh | ||
| Classic | Vishen Halambage | Dale Phillips |
| Muditha Lakshan | Zahir Khan | |
| Lahiru Udara | N/a | |
| Emerging U23 | Sahan Mihira | N/a |
| Pavan Sandesh | ||
| Associate Star | N/a | Brandon McMullen |
| Optional Gold | Dushan Hemantha | N/a |
| Optional Classic | Isitha Wijesundara |
Squad
- Players with international caps as of the start of the 2026 LPL are listed in bold.
- Ages are as of 17 July 2026.
- Withdrawn players are indicated by a dagger symbol (†) and placed at the bottom of the table.
| S/N | Name | Nationality | Birth date | Batting style | Bowling style | Category | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | Shaheen Shah Afridi |  Pakistan | 6 April 2000 (aged 26) | Left-handed | Left-arm fast | Overseas Gold | Overseas; replacement[a] |
| 15 | Muditha Lakshan |  Sri Lanka | 20 December 2000 (aged 25) | Right-handed | Slow left-arm orthodox | Domestic Classic | |
| 27 | Pavan Sandesh | Sri Lanka | 21 November 2003 (aged 22) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Emerging U23 | |
| 32 | Lahiru Udara | Sri Lanka | 27 November 1993 (aged 32) | Right-handed | N/a | Domestic Classic | |
| 34 | Dushan Hemantha | Sri Lanka | 24 May 1994 (aged 32) | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | Domestic Gold | |
| 49 | Wanindu Hasaranga | Sri Lanka | 29 July 1997 (aged 28) | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | Domestic Icon | |
| 53 | Nuwan Thushara | Sri Lanka | 6 August 1994 (aged 31) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Domestic Platinum | |
| 59 | Vijay Shankar |  India | 26 January 1991 (aged 35) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Overseas Star | Overseas |
| 69 | Angelo Mathews | Sri Lanka | 2 June 1987 (aged 39) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Domestic Star | Captain[20] |
| 75 | Zahir Khan |  Afghanistan | 20 December 1998 (aged 27) | Left-handed | Left-arm wrist spin | Overseas Classic | Overseas |
| 78 | Asitha Fernando | Sri Lanka | 31 July 1997 (aged 28) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Domestic Gold | |
| 92 | Garuka Sanketh | Sri Lanka | 30 May 2005 (aged 21) | Left-handed | Right-arm medium | Domestic Gold | |
| 95 | Dale Phillips |  New Zealand | 15 October 1998 (aged 27) | Right-handed | Right-arm fast-medium | Overseas Classic | Overseas |
| 153 | Kusal Perera | Sri Lanka | 17 August 1990 (aged 35) | Left-handed | N/a | Domestic Gold | |
| N/a | Kavija Gamage | Sri Lanka | 27 March 2007 (aged 19) | Right-handed | Right-arm off break | Domestic Classic | Replacement[b] |
| N/a | Sahan Mihira | Sri Lanka | 1 May 2004 (aged 22) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Emerging U23 | |
| N/a | Isitha Wijesundara | Sri Lanka | 11 May 1997 (aged 29) | Left-handed | Right-arm medium-fast | Domestic Classic | |
| 6 | Vishen Halambage † | Sri Lanka | 19 January 2005 (aged 21) | Right-handed | Right-arm leg break | Domestic Classic | Withdrawn[b] |
| 8 | Brandon McMullen † |  Scotland | 18 October 1999 (aged 26) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Associate Star | Overseas; withdrawn[c] |
| 18 | Moeen Ali † |  England | 18 June 1987 (aged 39) | Left-handed | Right-arm off break | Overseas Icon | Overseas; withdrawn[d] |
| 21 | Rahmanullah Gurbaz † | Afghanistan | 28 November 2001 (aged 24) | Right-handed | Right-arm medium | Overseas Platinum | Overseas; withdrawn[e] |
| 26 | Sediqullah Atal † | Afghanistan | 12 August 2001 (aged 24) | Left-handed | N/a | Overseas Platinum | Overseas; replacement;[e] withdrawn[f] |
| N/a | Daniel Sams † |  Australia | 27 October 1992 (aged 33) | Right-handed | Left-arm fast-medium | Overseas Gold | Overseas; withdrawn[a] |
- Shaheen Shah Afridi replaced Daniel Sams, after the latter withdrew due to personal reasons.[25]
- Kavija Gamage replaced Vishen Halambage, after the latter withdrew due to hamstring injury.[21]
- Brandon McMullen withdrew due to national duty.[22]
- Sediqullah Atal replaced Rahmanullah Gurbaz, after the latter withdrew due to national duty.[24]
- Sediqullah Atal withdrew due to national duty.[22]
Support staff
| Position | Name |
|---|---|
| Head coach | Chaminda Vaas |
| Bowling coach | Dhammika Prasad |
| Fielding coach | Upul Chandana |
League stage
Kandy Royals began their season with two losses to Dambulla Sixers[28] and Colombo Kaps.[29] They won their next match against Dambulla[30] but lost to Colombo again.[31] They won their next match against Galle Gallants[32] but lost to Jaffna Kings.[33] They won their next match against Galle[34] but lost to Jaffna again[35] and finished the league stage at fourth place with six points and advanced to Eliminator in the playoffs.[36][37]
Points table
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | NR | Pts | NRR | Qualification |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Jaffna Kings (R) | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 11 | 0.385 | Advanced to Qualifier 1 |
| 2 | Galle Gallants (C) | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 10 | 0.604 | |
| 3 | Colombo Kaps | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 8 | 0.108 | Advanced to Eliminator |
| 4 | Kandy Royals | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 6 | −0.567 | |
| 5 | Dambulla Sixers | 8 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 5 | −0.565 | Eliminated |
League progression
| Win | Loss | No result |
- Note: The total points at the end of each group match are listed.
- Note: Click on the points (group matches) or W/L (playoffs) to see the match summary.
Fixtures
Dambulla Sixers 205/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 187/6 (20 overs) |
- Dambulla Sixers won the toss and elected to bat.
- Reeza Hendricks and Gulbadin Naib (Dambulla Sixers) recorded the highest partnership for the 7th wicket (94* runs) in the LPL.[38]
Kandy Royals 179 (20 overs) |
v |
Colombo Kaps 182/4 (19.4 overs) |
- Colombo Kaps won the toss and elected to field.
Kandy Royals 194/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Dambulla Sixers 151/8 (20 overs) |
- Dambulla Sixers won the toss and elected to field.
Colombo Kaps 192/9 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 169/8 (20 overs) |
- Kandy Royals won the toss and elected to field.
Kandy Royals 165/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Galle Gallants 154/8 (20 overs) |
- Galle Gallants won the toss and elected to field.
Jaffna Kings 199/4 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 106 (18.2 overs) |
- Jaffna Kings won the toss and elected to bat.
Galle Gallants 208/3 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 214/4 (18.5 overs) |
- Galle Gallants won the toss and elected to bat.
- Lahiru Udara (Kandy Royals) scored his maiden T20 century and scored the highest individual score in the LPL.[39]
Jaffna Kings 221/6 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 200 (20 overs) |
Pavan Sandesh 48 (21) Dunith Wellalage 3/11 (2 overs) |
- Kandy Royals won the toss and elected to field.
Playoffs
Bracket
| Qualifier 1 | Qualifier 2 | Final | |||||||||||
| 5 August 2026 – Colombo (RPS) | 8 August 2026 – Colombo (RPS) | ||||||||||||
| 1 | Jaffna Kings | 242/2 (20 overs) | Q1W | Jaffna Kings | 123 (19.3 overs) | ||||||||
| 2 | Galle Gallants | 228/8 (20 overs) | 7 August 2026 – Colombo (RPS) | Q2W | Galle Gallants | 126/5 (15.5 overs) | |||||||
| Q1L | Galle Gallants | 177/4 (18.4 overs) | |||||||||||
| Eliminator | EW | Colombo Kaps | 176 (18.5 overs) | ||||||||||
| 5 August 2026 – Colombo (RPS) | |||||||||||||
| 3 | Colombo Kaps | 203/7 (20 overs) | |||||||||||
| 4 | Kandy Royals | 135 (18.4 overs) | |||||||||||
Eliminator
Colombo Kaps 203/7 (20 overs) |
v |
Kandy Royals 135 (18.4 overs) |
- Colombo Kaps won the toss and elected to bat.
Statistics
| Runs | Player |
|---|---|
| 434 | Lahiru Udara |
| 184 | Angelo Mathews |
| 150 | Vijay Shankar |
| 149 | Dale Phillips |
| 129 | Moeen Ali |
| Wickets | Player |
|---|---|
| 14 | Nuwan Thushara |
| 9 | Shaheen Shah Afridi |
| 7 | Dushan Hemantha |
| 6 | Wanindu Hasaranga |
| 5 | 2 players |