Veteran cricketer Dinesh Karthik played his last Indian Premier League (IPL) match when Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lost the Playoff to Rajasthan Royals. Dinesh Karthik did not make an official announcement but the post-match scenes made it clear that he had retired from the IPL.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru suffered a heartbreaking defeat against 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.
Watch – Virat Kohli consoles Dinesh Karthik after knockout loss
Former RCB captain Virat Kohli approached Dinesh Karthik, who tried to hold back tears. The RCB players allowed Karthik to take them off the field. He recently shared his plans to retire after RCB’s campaign in the IPL 2024 season. Karthik has had an emotional journey with the team in the tournament.
Virat Kohli consoling Dinesh Karthik. 🥹💔
– Dinesh Karthik has been brilliant for RCB, he gave his best. pYoc.twYottmyr.cohmeter/pvmyYoGRAMvrto6z
-Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) METERtoand 22, 2024
Karthik took off his gloves and expressed his gratitude to the fans, who stood up to applaud him. The veteran wicketkeeper-batsman deserved all the admiration he received from the RCB fans. He showed impressive batting performances throughout his career for the Bengaluru franchise in the cash-rich league.
Of #Rcb to Dinesh Karthik ❤️ #tTOtTOYoPl | #RRvRcb | #thmyFYonorthtoIctoII | #myIYometerYonorthtotohr | @Rcbtwmymytyes | @dYonorthmyyeshktorthYok pYoc.twYottmyr.cohmeter/p2xYo7TO1tto6
— Indian Premier League (@IPL) METERtoand 22, 2024
DK says goodbye 💔💔 pYoc.twYottmyr.cohmeter/northwzp06wrRMETER
– Archer (@poserarcher) METERtoand 22, 2024
Dinesh Karthik reinvented himself as a finisher and proved to be a match-winner after being picked by RCB. The right-handed batsman scored 330 runs at a strike rate of 183.33 in the 2022 edition of the IPL. His remarkable performance earned him a return to the Indian T20I team for the World Cup.
The Tamil Nadu-born cricketer previously played for RCB in the 2015 edition. He is among the seven players who have appeared in every edition of the IPL since its inception in 2008. He concluded his IPL career with 4,842 runs in 257 matches with an average of 26.32 and a strike rate of 135.36, including 22 half-centuries.
The wheels would probably have fallen off – Faf du Plessis
In the post-match conference, RCB captain Faf du Plessis expressed his pride in the team’s resilience after the disappointing start to the season. Du Plessis praised his teammates for his remarkable fighting spirit in his impressive streak of six consecutive victories.
“We knew we had to beat the score we got to challenge them, but on a normal occasion, it was an even score. I’m extremely proud. On a lot of other teams, the wheels probably would have fallen off after one out of nine.” (eight games)” Du Plessis said.
“The credit goes to the boys for fighting and giving everything we have. Coming back like this, six games in a row, requires a lot of heart and character. It’s a sad ending, when it happens like this (six wins in a row). You wonder if it’s possibly written in the stars and if there is something special”. he continued.
Also Read: RR vs RCB: ‘A bad day may come…’ – Aakash Chopra issues stern warning to Virat Kohli starrer RCB ahead of Eliminator
