Royal Challengers Bengaluru's (RCB) heartbreaking loss to Rajasthan Royals (RR) has brought an end to Dinesh Karthik's illustrious IPL career. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter had earlier confirmed that the 17th edition of the tournament would be the last IPL of his career.
Karthik wanted to end with an IPL trophy in his cabinet while playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru but it was not meant to be as Rajasthan Royals registered a four-wicket win in the Eliminator at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Wednesday (May 22) and put a screeching halt to RCB's journey.
Karthik tried hard but couldn't contribute as well as he would have liked to the team's cause. He scored 11 off 13 balls after surviving a close LBW scare with the help of a boundary. Avesh Khan put an end to his stay in the middle as Karthik failed to swat away a short-pitched delivery that got too big on him and ended up top-edging to cover.
Yashasvi Jaiswal settled under the ball and pouched it safely in the end.
Karthik, 38, was also involved in action during the second half of the game. He grabbed a catch down the leg side to help his team see the back of a set Yashasvi Jaiswal and inflicted a neat stumping to put brakes on Sanju Samson's knock.
Dinesh Karthik walks into the RCB dressing amid rousing reception from fans
Karthik was honoured by his teammates as they let him lead the side across the boundary rope after the conclusion of the game. The spectators thanked him for his services in the lucrative tournament and chanted 'DK' at the top of their lungs.
The Rajasthan Royals players also shared plenty of beautiful moments with the veteran wicketkeeper from Tamil Nadu and gave their best wishes. Notably, Karthik finished his IPL career as the 10th leading run-getter with 4842 runs to his credit.
