Dinesh Karthik was given a hero’s sendoff with a guard by the RCB players after the franchise’s IPL 2024 came to an end on May 21. This was after RCB lost to RR in the Eliminator of the tournament.
He led the group of players on its way to the dressing room, waving at the fans who were chanting ‘DK-DK’ in unison. There wasn’t any official statement from the franchise or the keeper-batter himself but the way he hugged Virat Kohli at the end of the game hinted at the emotional side of that moment, potentially marking the end of the journey of the 38-year-old.
On Friday, RCB released a special video on social media in which Dinesh Karthik spoke his heart out and detailed certain aspects of his illustrious career. He didn’t say it straight-forward but almost cleared the air on his IPL future.
“At times when you’re done, it will be a very emotional moment. Could very well be that it’s my last practice session. I don’t know. But all I can say is it’s been a journey that’s been filled with a lot of happy memories, some sad ones, as it should be. And it’s helped me become the person that I am and a very grateful one. Just the fact that it’s lasted however long it’s lasted, I can definitely say that I’ve given it my all, and that’s what I feel,” Karthik said in the RCB video.
The experienced wicketkeeper-batsman thanked RCB for giving him an opportunity, which enabled him to relaunch his international career. He was signed by the Bengaluru-based franchise in the IPL 2022 auction for INR 5.5 crore.
And following a brilliant performance as a finisher for RCB, he returned to Team India for the T20 World Cup in Australia.
Karthik also heaped appreciation on Virat Kohli, thanking him for being present when he returned to play for the country.
“I’m a big fan of his to know that he respects me and values me as a person. I think I’ll take that as a massive, massive success in my cricketing journey. Just want to thank people like him who have been there during my journey and I will do anything I can for RCB whenever possible. I mean, the fact that they’ve given me a new lease of life and I’ve played for them towards the fag end of my career is one that I’ll never forget,” Karthik added.
Karthik has represented six franchises in the IPL and has 4842 runs, 22 half-centuries, 145 catches, and 37 stumpings to his credit.
