Dinesh Karthik officially announces retirement from all forms of cricket

Dinesh Karthik made it official on Saturday. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter announced his retirement from all forms of cricket. The writing was on the wall when Karthik was given an emotional farewell by his IPL franchise, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, after losing the Eliminator to the Rajasthan Royals. Karthik finally put the official stamp on it 10 days later.

"Having given it plenty of thought for some time now, I have decided to move on from playing representative cricket. I officially announce my retirement and put my playing days behind me as I square up for the new challenges that lie ahead," Karthik wrote in a social media statement.

The RCB vs RR IPL Eliminator turned out to be the Tamil Nadu cricketer's last appearance in a competitive cricket tournament, bringing an end to a career that lasted two decades.

"I'd like to thank all my coaches, captains, selectors, teammates and members of the support staff who have made this long journey enjoyable. Among millions that play the sport in our country, I consider myself one of the luckiest to have had the chance to represent my country," he added.

26 Tests, 94 ODIs and 60 T20s over two decades don't make for eye-popping numbers but the forever fidgety 38-year-old managed to stay relevant till the very end despite spending more time in the commentary box than on the field over the past couple of years.

Ahead of the T20 World Cup squad announcement, Karthik forced himself into the selection debate for the wicket-keeper batter's role with head-turning performances for RCB but that one final comeback wasn't meant to be as selectors rightly went for younger talent.

While commentating on the India-England Test series in February-March, Karthik had made up his mind about retirement, but the world only learned this when Michael Atherton let it slip in a podcast with the Tamil Nadu stumper.

Karthik finished his IPL career with 4,842 runs in 257 matches (joint second-most with Rohit Sharma), studded with 22 fifties.

In his illustrious IPL career, which spanned over 17 years, Karthik played for six franchises in the cash-rich league. He made his debut in the inaugural season in 2008 with the Delhi Daredevils (now Delhi Capitals). He switched to Punjab in 2011 and went on to play for the Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Lions, Kolkata Knight Riders, and the RCB.

He ended the current season with 326 runs in 15 matches with an average of 36.22, and a strike rate of 187.36.