Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) defeat against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the IPL 2024 Eliminator on Wednesday (May 22) marked the end of Dinesh Karthik’s illustrious IPL career.
Karthik’s IPL journey, which started in the inaugural 2008 edition itself, included stints with six different franchises, showcasing his adaptability and commitment. Starting with Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals), he later played for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings), Mumbai Indians, now-defunct Gujarat Lions, Kolkata Knight Riders and RCB.
Karthik also made a mark while playing for India even though his peak clashed with the legendary MS Dhoni as a wicketkeeper-batter. He represented the country in 26 Tests, 94 ODIs and 60 T20Is, amassing 3463 runs across formats, which includes one hundred and 17 half-centuries.
On his retirement from IPL and international cricket, RCB shared a video on social media, where Karthik's teammate Virat Kohli, wife Dipika Pallikal and mentor Abhishek Nayar paid tribute to the man known for his comebacks.
"First time I met DK, I remember we were playing in South Africa, Champions Trophy 2009. That was the first time I shared the change room with Dinesh and I found him to be very amusing, very, I would say hyper-active confused person, most of the time he was moving all over the place, never stopping. That was my first impression of Dinesh. Outstanding talent, brilliant batsman to watch. My first impression and the present day impression are not far apart, just that he has become wiser and calmed down a lot,” Kohli said.
"I guess when things are meant to be, they happen and when we met in 2013, I think it was very fast that we knew that we have to spend our lives with each other and I'm guessing everything clicked," Dipika stated.
Nayar said, "I remember watching his father speaking about Dinesh when he was young. I think DK was really good at is once he's decided he wants to do something, he takes it upon himself and follows it to the T. He's not someone who'll question what someone's told. He's a great follower, he's a great leader as well. I think for someone to be a great leader, he needs to have the ability to follow and listen and I think DK has that tremendously."
In 17 IPL seasons, Dinesh Karthik aggregated 4842 runs in 257 matches at a strike rate of 135.36 with 22 half-centuries. He batted at various positions all these years but his days at the RCB as a finisher over the past three seasons stood out.
Kohli continued, "Off the field I've had some really nice and interesting conversations with him. He's a very wise man, has great knowledge about a lot of things, not just cricket. I have thoroughly enjoyed my conversations with him. Even in the phase in 2022 when I didn't have a great IPL season, I was really struggling for confidence, he sat me down a couple of times and gave me a very honest explanation of how he is seeing things and maybe I am not able to see them myself. I just like his honesty, courage to go and speak to anyone about things he really feels about. That's the most special thing for me when it comes to Dinesh and that's always I've cherished about him and that's what we get along really really well."
Reflecting on Karthik's time in RCB, Kohli said, "He's been connected to the team now for a long period of time and he has really thoroughly enjoyed himself here. He has been dearly accepted by the fans and he has a great cricketing brain so I wish him all the very best for his future endeavours moving forward and also hopefully he remains connected to RCB in one way or the other in the future because his expertise when it comes to cricket is priceless. I think he's of great value to this franchise."
"He's got a lovely family, lovely wife, his kids are beautiful and I can tell him that he can be really proud of himself and his career and what he's done to make a name for himself and be accepted and loved by so many people, it's a great blessing so I wish him all the best," Virat further remarked in the RCB tribute video.
