Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Coach Dinesh Karthik To Play For Franchise's Paarl Royals In SA20 League

Former Indian wicket-keeper and batter Dinesh Karthik, who was recently appointed as the batting coach and mentor for the Royal Challenger's Bengaluru (RCB) after he announced retirement from all forms of cricket, made a big U-turn on Tuesday and agreed to the opportunity to play for Paarl Royalsin the SA20 league.

"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," Dinesh Karthik said.

The ace cricketer represented India in more than 180 matches at the international level across all 3 formats. He played for several IPL franchises and ended his last appearance for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

"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," Karthik told media after being roped in as Royal's ambassador.

Royals' Director of Cricket, Kumar Sangakkara said that Dinesh Karthik's extensive T20 experience may help the side to clinch the title.

"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.

"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," said Sangakkara.