There has been no respite for Ajinkya Rahane this season. Amid Kolkata Knight Riders’ struggles in IPL 2026, where they remain winless after their first five games for the first time in a league season, the captain has now been found guilty of breaching the Code of Conduct in the match against Chennai Super Kings on Tuesday at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Rahane was fined by the Board of Control for Cricket in India for maintaining a slow over-rate during the match. Since it was the team’s first offence of the season under Article 2.22 of the IPL’s Code of Conduct, which pertains to minimum over-rate offences, Rahane was fined INR 12 lakh.
Rahane became the fourth captain to be charged for a slow over-rate offence this season. Shreyas Iyer was the first, as Punjab Kings breached the rule in two games — against Gujarat Titans in New Chandigarh on March 31 and against CSK on April 2. Iyer was fined INR 12 lakh for the first offence and INR 24 lakh for the second.
Shubman Gill was next, after Gujarat Titans’ offence against Delhi Capitals on April 8, followed by Ruturaj Gaikwad during CSK’s game against Delhi last week. Both were fined INR 12 lakh as it was their first offence.
New low for KKR
The 2024 champions have hit a new low in IPL 2026, failing to secure a single win in their first five matches. They lost to Mumbai Indians in their opener, followed by a 65-run defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad at home. KKR finally got off the mark with a shared point in a rain-abandoned game against Punjab Kings at the Eden Gardens.
However, they failed to bounce back against Lucknow Super Giants and CSK, leaving them at the bottom of the points table.
Kolkata have now lost six straight IPL matches, including defeats to SRH and CSK in their final two completed games last season. This is their joint second-longest losing streak, matching the run from 2019. Their worst remains the nine-match losing streak in IPL 2009.
