Dinesh Karthik Retirement:
Veteran cricketer Dinesh Karthik has said goodbye to all formats of cricket. The celebrated wicketkeeper-batsman announced his retirement on June 1 (Saturday), coinciding with his 39th birthday. Karthik reminisced over his two-decade-long cricket journey in a heartfelt social media post.
Karthik's declaration on X read, 'I'm overwhelmed by the love, support, and affection I've received in recent days. Deep gratitude and heartfelt thanks to all the fans who made this possible. After much contemplation, I've decided to step away from cricket. I officially announce my retirement and am excited to face new challenges ahead.'
Karthik expresses gratitude, saying, 'I want to thank my coaches, captains, selectors, teammates, and support staff for making this journey enjoyable and fulfilling. I consider myself one of the fortunate few to have represented my country. I am even luckier to have earned the goodwill of so many fans and friends.'
Furthermore, Karthik shares, 'Throughout these years, my parents have been my pillars of strength and support, and without their blessings, I wouldn’t be who I am today. I also owe a huge thanks to Deepika (wife), a professional sportswoman herself. My utmost appreciation to all the fans of this great sport. Cricket and cricketers wouldn't be the same without your support and good wishes.'
Debuted for Team India before Dhoni
Dinesh Karthik made his international cricket debut before MS Dhoni. Karthik's Test debut was in November 2004 against Australia. He made his ODI debut at Lord's against England on September 5, 2004, and his T20 debut on December 1, 2006, against South Africa in Johannesburg. Dhoni's Test debut came against Sri Lanka in Chennai in December 2005, while his ODI debut was against Bangladesh in Chittagong in December 2004. Both DK and Dhoni made their T20 debuts in the same match against South Africa.
Source: aajtak
Played for 6 IPL Teams
Dinesh Karthik has been a longstanding player in the IPL, representing six teams over his career. He has scored 4842 runs in 257 matches, hitting 22 half-centuries. Karthik is among the top ten run-scorers in IPL history. During his career, he has taken 147 catches and made 37 stumpings. Karthik put on a strong performance in the IPL 2024, scoring 326 runs in 15 matches. His performance earned him a spot back in the race for the T20 World Cup team.
Karthok has shown time and again that in IPL, age is just a number. His fantastic prowess in the IPL 2022 series for RCB was nothing short of remarkable. Here, he scored 330 runs at a strike rate of 183, which ultimately led to his selection for the T20 World Cup team.
Karthik's Illustrious International Cricket Career
In his tenure, Dinesh Karthik played 26 Test matches for India scoring 1025 runs along with 57 catches and 6 stumps. In ODIs, he represented Team India in 94 games, scoring 1752 runs, capturing 64 catches, and executing 7 stumping. While in T20s, playing 60 matches, he scored 686 runs, took 30 catches, and made 6 stumping.
