CHENNAI:
Veteran cricketer Dinesh Karthik played his final Indian Premier League (IPL) match when Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lost the Eliminator to the Rajasthan Royals. Dinesh Karthik didn’t make an official announcement, but the post-match scenes made it clear that he had retired from the IPL.
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru suffered a heartbreaking defeat against the Rajasthan Royals at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, May 22. The Faf du Plessis-led team posted a total of 172 runs in 20 overs. RR chased down the target with four wickets and six balls to spare.
Former RCB captain Virat Kohli walked up to Dinesh Karthik, who tried to hold back tears. RCB players allowed Karthik to lead them off the field. He recently shared his plans to retire following RCB’s campaign in the IPL 2024 season. Karthik has had an emotional journey with the team in the tournament.
Karthik removed his gloves and expressed gratitude to the fans, who stood up to applaud him. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter deserved all the admiration he received from RCB fans. He showcased impressive batting performances throughout his career for the Bengaluru franchise in the cash-rich league.
Dinesh Karthik reinvented himself as a finisher and proved to be a match-winner after being picked by RCB. The right-handed batter scored 330 runs at a strike rate of 183.33 in the 2022 edition of the IPL. His remarkable performance earned him a comeback into the Indian T20I side for the World Cup.
The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer previously played for RCB in the 2015 edition. He is among the seven players to feature in every edition of the IPL since its inception in 2008. He concluded his IPL career with 4,842 runs in 257 matches at an average of 26.32 and a strike rate of 135.36, including 22 half-centuries.
The Wheels Would Have Probably Fallen Off – Faf du Plessis
At the post-match conference, RCB skipper Faf du Plessis expressed pride in the team’s resilience after the disappointing start to the season. Du Plessis praised his teammates for their remarkable fighting spirit in their impressive six-game winning streak.
“We knew we had to be more than the score we got to challenge them but on a normal occasion, it was a par score. I am extremely proud. A lot of other teams, the wheels would have probably fallen off after one from nine (eight games),” Du Plessis said.
“Credit to the boys to fight and give everything we have. To come back like that, six games in a row, takes a lot of heart and character. It’s a sad ending – when it goes like that (six wins in a row) you wonder if it’s possibly written in the stars and if there’s something special,” he continued.
