"MI could have really helped me grow" - Dinesh Karthik regrets asking Mumbai Indians not to retain him
Team India's veteran keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik is currently plying his trade for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2024) season.
Karthik has represented six teams in his IPL career. The 38-year-old recently opened up about how he regrets choosing to be released by Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2013. He suggested that being part of the franchise for longer would have helped his career significantly.
The seasoned campaigner also mentioned that his other career regret is not playing for Chennai Super Kings (CSK), his home state. Karthik, however, acknowledged that Chennai have bid for him at the auction on several occasions.
Speaking on Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel 'Ashwin,' Karthik said:
"I don't have much regrets in my cricket career - one will be the fact that I didn't want to get retained in 2013, MI could have really helped me grow and become an even better player and second will be I couldn't be part of CSK but I respect them a lot as they bid for me every time."
Dinesh Karthik has scored 90 runs across four innings at a strike rate of 173.07 so far in IPL 2024.
"They’re always there, creating an ecosystem for you to become the best player that you can be" - Dinesh Karthik on Mumbai Indians
Dinesh Karthik highlighted that the Mumbai-based franchise helps their players by offering them venues and coaches for practice, allowing them to become the best version of themselves.
Elaborating on the same, Karthik said (via the aforementioned source):
"What MI does is provide resources in terms of practice and access to the coaches whenever you want to upskill your game. They’re always there, creating an ecosystem for you to become the best player that you can be."
"You can tell MI that in between Ranji Trophy matches, I want to practice and they have a field, they have coaches, they have balls and they have bowlers. They have sidearms, they will give you everything; they’ll give you a stay, they’ll give you flight tickets. They will give you everything possible to become the best version of yourself," he added.
Dinesh Karthik will next be seen in action on Thursday, April 11, when RCB take on MI at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.