IPL 2026: Lucknow Super Giants have signed George Linde as a replacement for Wanindu Hasaranga, who has been ruled out of the Indian Premier League 2026 due to a hamstring injury.
Hasaranga, who was bought by LSG for Rs 2 crore at the IPL 2026 mini-auction, sustained the injury during the T20 World Cup earlier this year while representing Sri Lanka. The leg-spinning all-rounder had been undergoing rehabilitation and was expected to join the squad later in the tournament. However, he did not complete the mandatory fitness assessment conducted by Sri Lanka Cricket required to obtain a No Objection Certificate (NOC), leading to his withdrawal from the competition.
LSG, led by Rishabh Pant, considered multiple options, including Mujeeb Ur Rahman and Liam Dawson, before finalising Linde as the replacement.
Linde, who went unsold at the IPL 2026 mini-auction with a base price of Rs 1 crore, is set to make his debut in the tournament. The South African all-rounder was recently part of his national side’s campaign in the T20 World Cup, where South Africa reached the semi-finals before losing to New Zealand.
The 33-year-old has represented South Africa in 37 T20 Internationals, taking 35 wickets at an economy rate of 7.58 and scoring 403 runs.
Lucknow Super Giants have had a mixed start to their campaign, losing their opening match against Delhi Capitals before registering consecutive wins over Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders.
