Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik hug each other after the IPL eliminator match against Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Dinesh Karthik’s international career was a classic case of what could have been after the arrival of Mahendra Singh Dhoni but on Wednesday, when he said goodbye to the game at the end of his team’s IPL campaign, it was from a stage he made his own over the past 17 years.

The Eliminator between his Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Rajasthan Royals ended up being Karthik’s swansong, bringing down curtains on a 20-year-old career marked by a series of comebacks across formats.

Twenty six 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 he was commentating on the India-England Test series in February-March, Karthik had made up his mind on retirement but the world only got to know when Michael Atherton let it slip in a podcast with the Tamil Nadu stumper.

Having played for as many as six teams in the IPL since the tournament’s inception in 2008, Karthik can be proud of his record in the world’s premier T20 league.

He finished as an IPL winner with close to 5000 runs over 17 seasons besides taking 145 catches and effecting 37 stumpings.

He batted at various positions all these years but his days at the RCB as a finisher over the past three seasons stood out.

In a format increasingly ruled by power-hitters, Karthik relied on his experience, game awareness and touch to find the boundaries at will.

His 330 runs at a strike rate of 183 in 2022 earned him a recall to the Indian team for the T20 World Cup but that happened to be his last time in national colours.

He scored at an even higher clip this season but despite making himself available for the upcoming World Cup, he deep down knew his comeback saga with Indian cricket had come to an end.

Karthik had his moments in stop-start India career

The Chennai-born cricketer was only 19 when he made his India debut in an ODI against England at Lord’s in September 2004.

He announced his arrival on the big stage with a spectacular stumping of opposition skipper Michael Vaughan.

Three months later, he made his Test debut against Australia but his international career could never really take off due to middling performances and rise of Dhoni.

With Dhoni a certainty in the playing eleven, Karthik was asked to open the batting on the tour of England in 2007 and he made a standout contribution in the team’s rare Test series win away from home.

Between 2010 and 2017, Karthik remained sought after in the world of IPL but his stock fell sharply in the national team.

He got back in the scheme of things following India’s loss to Pakistan in the 2017 Champions Trophy final.

Between 2017 and 2019, Karthik regularly played for India in the white-ball formats. His memorable knocks included the iconic last ball six that helped India seal the 2018 Nidahas T20 Trophy in Colombo.

Couple of months later, he made a Test comeback after eight years but that was short-lived.

Karthik was seen as a certainty for the 2019 ODI World Cup but by his own admission, he was shocked to know about his exclusion from the home series against Australia, ahead of the ICC event in England.

The selectors surprisingly brought him back for the World Cup where he only got three games, including the ill-fated semifinal against New Zealand.

The final chapter of his comeback story unfolded after a stellar IPL in 2022 but like on previous instances, Karthik could not seize the opportunity and could only manage only 14 runs in three innings at the T20 World Cup in Australia.

By his own admission, his India career could have been so much more but there was no shame in being overshadowed by someone like Dhoni.

The consistency that he lacked in international cricket was his friend in the IPL and his significant contribution was duly recognised by his RCB teammates on Wednesday night including the great Virat Kohli who was the first one to acknowledge his long career.

Karthik will be back in the commentary box soon and could be seen playing the T20 leagues outside the IPL.

Match officials on the ground after the Indian Premier League T20 cricket match between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders was abandoned due to rain without a ball bowled in Guwahati on May 19, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Rain brought down the curtains on the league stage of the Indian Premier League when the game between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders at the ACA Stadium here was abandoned on Sunday without a ball bowled.

Although there were hopes of having a seven-over game after the rains relented at 10.02 p.m. and Shreyas Iyer opted to bowl at the toss — delayed by three hours — another wet spell forced the umpires’ hands to call it a day.

Although KKR wouldn’t be too bothered, the washout will crush the spirits of RR, which has been on a wretched four-match losing streak, further. Sanju Samson’s men, who once looked set to finish the Group Stage at pole position, will now meet Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Eliminator on Wednesday. KKR and Sunrisers Hyderabad, meanwhile, will have two shots at making the final.

The first signs of trouble appeared when heavy showers lashed the city in the early hours of the day.

At around a quarter past 6 p.m. the broadcast crew started covering their cameras near the sight-screen. Under a minute later, a tarp sheet and two huge umbrellas were kept right beside the pitch.

Before half-an-hour had passed, it had started to drizzle. The groundsmen were quick to spring into action and before it could translate into a heavy downpour the entire playing area was covered.

There was shortlived relief at 8.08 p.m. when they started peeling off the square covers and the super soppers were brought on.

However, the rain returned, heavier than ever, at 8.50 p.m. The groundsmen scurried across the green in desperate attempts to protect the outfield, but in a while it seemed they too had given up. With an under-par drainage, they had deemed it was ‘game over’ way before the official announcement.

The five-time IPL winning skipper Rohit Sharma endured a wretched form in the second-half of the season, struggling to cross even a score of 20 in six matches for Mumbai Indians.
| Photo Credit: ANI

India skipper Rohit Sharma acknowledged that he could not match the expected batting standards in the ongoing IPL but instead of indulging in over-thinking, his endeavour was to stay in the right zone and keep working on his flaws.

The five-time IPL winning skipper endured a wretched form in the second-half of the season, struggling to cross even a score of 20 in six matches for Mumbai Indians.

“As a batter, I know I didn’t live up to the standard. But, after playing for all these years, I know that if I overthink, I won’t play well,” Rohit said on JioCinema Match Centre Live. He returned to form with a 38-ball 68 in their last match against Lucknow Super Giants but MI ended up on the losing side and finished the season at the bottom of the table.

“All I try is to stay in a good mindset, in the right zone, keep practicing, and improve on all the flaws in my game. That’s all I kept doing.

“Our season didn’t go according to plan. We blame ourselves for this because we made too many mistakes during the season. We lost many games that we should have won, but that’s the nature of the IPL. You get a few chances and when those chances come, you must grab them.” ‘

70% of T20 WC players had clarity’

The Indian skipper said they knew what their the T20 World Cup-squad would be like and 70% of the players had clarity about their roles going into the IPL.

“We thought a lot about the team we ultimately selected for the World Cup. The spinners, seamers, batters, and keepers, we knew before the IPL who we would take to the World Cup.

“The IPL performances for everyone can be up and down, so we didn’t focus too much on that. We needed to see the performances of certain players, but it was important for us to give everyone the clarity they needed.

“Everyone going into the IPL needed clarity of whether they would participate in the team and what their role would be so they could practice and play accordingly. All of these indicators we had shared with 70% of the team before the IPL.” India begin their T20 World Cup campaign against Ireland in New York on June 5.

Rajasthan Royals’ Rovman Powell dives into the crease successfully during the Indian Premier League cricket match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals in Hyderabad, India, Thursday, May 2, 2024.
| Photo Credit: AP

Bhuvneshwar Kumar turned out to be the hero, striking the big blows when it mattered most, to help Sunrisers Hyderabad pull off a sensational one-run win over table-topper Rajasthan Royals, in an IPL match at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium here on Thursday.

With 13 runs needed off the last over bowled by Bhuvneshwar, the match came down to two runs off the last ball. He trapped the big-hitting Rovman Powell leg-before to trigger celebrations in the stands and in the team’s dug out.

Earlier, Bhuvneshwar produced a dream first over, sending back Impact Player Jos Buttler and Sanju Samson for ducks to make an early dent to Royals’ hopes, who were chasing 202 for a win.

But the visitors stayed in the hunt when the young guns Yashasvi Jaiswal (67, 40b, 7×4, 2×6) and Riyan Parag (77, 49b, 8×4, 4×6) put on 134 off 82 balls by treating the bowlers with contempt and playing strokes all over the park.

SRH skipper Pat Cummins’ third and fourth overs, during which he picked up the wickets of Parag and Dhruv Jurel without being expensive, put the home team back in the hunt.

Earlier, the in-form opener Abhishek Sharma and Anmolpreet Singh fell cheaply as the home team scored just 37 for two in the PowerPlay against a disciplined Royals bowling attack. Travis Head, who scored 18 runs off 17 balls in the first six overs, was lucky to survive when a slash off the first ball of the innings from Trent Boult just flew past Parag at backward point.

Soon the left-hander switched gears, and in the company of the free-stroking Nitish Kumar Reddy (76 not out, 42b, 3×4, 8×6), pulled and lofted leggie Yuzvendra Chahal for two sixes in the ninth over.

Later, Nitish hit two huge sixes and a four in Chahal’s third over and then one over extra-cover off pacer Sandeep Sharma to show his class.

Nitish’s two crucial stands — 96 (57 balls) with Head (58, 44b, 6×4, 3×6) for the third wicket and an unbeaten 70 with Heinrich Klaasen (42 not out, 19b, 3×4, 3×6) — saw Sunrisers come back strongly and breach the 200-run mark.

Mumbai Indians’ Hardik Pandya bowls during the Indian Premier League (IPL) match between Lucknow Super Giants and Mumbai Indians, at the Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium, in Lucknow on April 30, 2024.
| Photo Credit: PTI

Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya has been fined ₹24 lakh after his team’s second slow over-rate offence in the Indian Premier League during their match against Lucknow Super Giants in Lucknow.

All the other players, including the Impact Player, were each individually fined either ₹6 lakh or 25% of their respective match fees, whichever is lesser.

MI lost the match by four wickets at the Ekana Stadium on April 30.

“Mr. Hardik Pandya, Captain, Mumbai Indians has been fined after his team maintained a slow over-rate during Match 48 of the TATA Indian Premier League [IPL] 2024 against Lucknow Super Giants on April 30, 2024,” the IPL said in a statement.

“As it was his team’s second offence of the season under the IPL’s Code of Conduct relating to minimum over-rate offences, Pandya was fined INR 24 Lac,” it said adding, “The rest of the members of the Playing XI, including the Impact Player, were each individually fined either INR 6 Lac or 25% of their respective match fees, whichever is lesser.”

Motherland’s cricket collection, which is inspired by the cricket fashion of the 1970s, embraces nostalgia with whites, off-whites and deep navy blues
| Photo Credit: Special arrangement

Cricket fever continues to soar with the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) and in tow is a fashionable limited-edition clothing capsule themed on the gentleman’s game. It transports the sport’s diehard fans,donning their favourite team’s jerseys at stadiums, to the era of test cricket. Motherland’s cricket collection, which is inspired by the cricket fashion of the 1970s, embraces nostalgia with whites, off-whites and deep navy blues. The recurring pattern on the edit’s pullovers, sweatshirts, T-shirts and caps is the seam of a cricket ball, which underlines its design vocabulary, as is the insignia that reads ‘Eye On The Ball’.

The recurring pattern on the edit’s pullovers, sweatshirts, T-shirts and caps is the seam of a cricket ball, which underlines its design vocabulary, as is the insignia that reads ‘Eye On The Ball’
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

“From the ’70s through’90s, Test cricket had great style. The image of Kapil Dev and the boys holding the (limited overs) world cup is so iconic. Our symbology of the spin ball and ‘eye on the ball’ typography at the first glance looks like a protest symbol which is very much part of street fashion vocabulary,” says the founder, principal designer and creative director of Motherland, V Sunil, who started his career in advertising, catapulting it to hit campaigns like Make in India, and is also the founder trustee of the Kochi-Muziris Biennale.

V Sunil, founder, Motherland
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

Sunil shares that the collection was curated over nearly six months, from design to production, but the brand had been planning it for more than a year. “The collection is made up of 100% cotton knitwear and 100% cotton twill fabric for caps. Cotton’s hygroscopicity and breathability makes it ideal for everyday wear as well as for sports,” he notes.

The collection is made up of 100% cotton knitwear and 100% cotton twill fabric for caps
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

Many brands, including global sportswear giant Adidas and Indian fashion designer duo Shantanu and Nikhil, have dabbled in cricket fashion. The former collaborated with New York based fashion and footwear brand Extra Butter (now also in India) for a cricket-inspired collection, while the latter launched casual-wear brand Shantnu Nikhil Cricket Club last year. So, when asked what lends an edge to Motherland’s collection on the sport, Sunil bats for its classic collars, colour combination of off-white, navy and maroon and “most importantly, our symbology, cricket-ball stitch and double-colour polo really stand out from regular sports brands”.

 Sunil bats for its classic collars, colour combination of off-white, navy and maroon
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

He admits to the growing popularity of sportswear, with international ramps speckled with the design vocabulary of street fashion evolving as athleisure and activewear. “Street fashion and culture around it were looked down upon by the so-called luxury brands, but now the tables have turned. People like Kanye West, [late] Virgil Abloh and Pharrell Williams have shown the world how cool and deep street fashion can be,” he says. His brand taps into the segment as an ode to cricketing heritage, designed to serve as a reminder of the values it represents — teamwork, discipline and fair play. “A tribute to the meritocratic spirit of cricket, this collection is about creating products with style, energy and character at accessible prices, a philosophy that we call sportocracy,” he adds.

The collection pays a tribute to the meritocratic spirit of cricket
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

Motherland, which is primarily an online brand, will soon have a store in Gurugram. “We have a design studio in Delhi and have manufactured these garments from factories based in Bangalore and Ludhiana,” states Sunil, while adding that the collection’s raw material was sourced locally. “So much embroidery detailing that is included in the collection made us repeat the sampling process a lot many times before perfect embroidery was achieved. All the styles are designed and made in India,” he says.

Motherland taps into the segment as an ode to cricketing heritage, designed to serve as a reminder of the values it represents — teamwork, discipline and fair play
| Photo Credit:
Special arrangement

So, what are you wearing to the next IPL match?

The pullovers, sweatshirts, T-shirts and caps of Motherland’s cricket collection start at ₹1,500 on motherlandsuperstore.com.