Dinesh Karthik Retirement: At the age of 39, Dinesh Karthik retired from all formats of cricket, wrote an emotional post

Team India’s star cricketer Dinesh Karthik has retired from all formats of cricket. Wicketkeeper batsman Karthik announced his retirement on his 39th birthday on June 1. Karthik was seen playing for RCB in the recent IPL season. Karthik has posted on social media and recalled his more than two decade long cricketing career.

Karthik wrote on Twitter, I am overwhelmed by the affection, support and love I have received in the last few days. My deepest gratitude and heartfelt thanks to all the fans who made this possible. After contemplating on it for a long time, I have decided to retire from cricket. I officially announce my retirement, leaving my playing days behind and getting ready for new challenges ahead.

Karthik says, I would like to thank my coaches, captains, selectors, teammates and support staff members who have made this long journey enjoyable and pleasurable. I consider myself one of the few lucky ones who got a chance to represent the country. I am even more fortunate to earn the goodwill of so many fans and friends.

Karthik further said, my parents have been my pillars of strength and support all these years and without their blessings I would not have been what I am today. I am also very grateful to Deepika, who is herself a professional player. A big thank you to all the fans of our great game. Cricket and cricketers would not exist without your support and best wishes.

Dinesh Karthik made his international debut before MS Dhoni. Karthik made his international debut against Australia in November 2004 against South Africa in Johannesburg. Dhoni made his Test debut against Sri Lanka in Chennai in December 2005. Dhoni’s ODI debut was against Bangladesh in Chittagong in December 2004. However, Dhoni and DK made their T20 debut in the same match, which was played against South Africa.

Karthik played for 6 teams in IPL

Dinesh Karthik has been one of the players who have played in IPL since its inception. He scored 4842 runs in 257 matches with 22 half-centuries. Karthik is among the top 10 run-scorers in IPL history. During this period, Karthik also took 147 catches and 37 stumps.