South Africa’s T20 league, SA20, will welcome its first Indian player: wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik next season. Karthik, who had just announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, will return to play for Paarl Royals, the sister team of the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League. Karthik chose to end his brilliant career after the 2024 IPL season, despite not having any fitness difficulties and having a successful season. He acknowledged that he could have continued to play for another IPL cycle, however, he decided not to. After serving as a player for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru for two different spells, he was immediately chosen as their batting coach and mentor. He decided to return because of what he had said to be an opportunity he couldn’t say no to.
“I have so many fond memories of playing in and visiting South Africa, and when this opportunity came about, I couldn’t say no because of how special it would be to come back to playing competitive cricket and win this incredible competition with the Royals,” Karthik said.
Karthik has featured in all 17 IPL seasons and has been a part of the league from its start, however, he has never played for the Rajasthan Royals.
“Even though I didn’t have the chance to represent the Royals in the IPL, to me it was always a franchise setup and environment that was very attractive as a player. I am delighted to be joining the Paarl Royals team which oozes a lot of experience, quality, and potential. I am certainly looking forward to joining the group and contributing to what should be an exciting season,” he added.
“Dinesh has served as one of the modern-day greats for India in white-ball cricket, and his wealth of experience will contribute to the making of our side for Season 3,” Royals’ Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara said. “He has always proved to be a great asset for the teams he’s represented across leagues for the way he approaches the game and the impact he can make, so it’s an exciting signing for us and we look forward to having him with the group at Paarl.”
Paarl Royals, a side led by David Miller reached the Semi-finals of the first SA20 season, while they bowed out of the Eliminator in the second season this year. The addition of Dinesh Karthik will bring a new dimension to the side along with all his experience. The third season will be played from January 8 to February 9 in 2025.
