Dinesh Karthik, the former Indian wicketkeeper-batter, was announced as the new batting coach and mentor for Royal Challengers Bengaluru, in an announcement by the Indian Premier League franchise on Monday.
Karthik had announced his retirement from all forms of cricket after the Bengaluru franchise lost the Eliminator in IPL 2024 a month earlier.
In a statement from the franchise, Karthik expressed his excitement about the appointment, saying “Coaching at a professional level is incredibly exciting for me and is something I'm truly passionate about as a new chapter in my life,”
“Hopefully, the breadth of my experiences as a player can contribute to the development of the group and bring added value.”
Karthik will work alongside head coach Andy Flower, bowling coach Adam Griffith and director of cricket Mo Bobat at the Bengaluru franchise that finished fourth in the 2024 edition.
While the wicketkeeper-batter doesn’t have much frontline coaching experience, he was a batting advisor to the England Lions squad that had toured India earlier this year in January, ahead of the senior men’s tour.
The 39-year-old, who made his ODI debut for India as a 19-year-old back in 2004, has vast batting experience of over two decades during which he played 26 Tests, 94 One-Day Internationals and 60 T20 Internationals for India.
He also featured in 257 IPL games, scoring an aggregate of 4842 runs, including 22 fifties. During his time in the IPL, Karthik represented Punjab Kings, the erstwhile Gujarat Lions, Kolkata Knight Riders, Delhi Capitals (when it was known as Delhi Daredevils) and Mumbai Indians. He won the 2013 IPL and Champions League titles with the Mumbai franchise.
