NEW DELHI: Former India keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik on Saturday became the first Indian ever to feature in South Africa’s SA20 when he stepped out on the field for hosts Paarl Royals against Sunrisers Eastern Cape in the third match of the new season.
Karthik, who retired from international cricket and the IPL last year, joined the Royals as a replacement for England’s Jos Buttler.
The 39-year-old on Saturday lauded South Africa’s premier T20 league, saying that he wanted to play some really competitive cricket and said yes to featuring in the competition instantly.
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Karthik also labelled the SA20 as the second best league after the IPL, pointing out that he is amazed to see the talent in the competition.
“A couple of reasons I joined this league. A) I genuinely believe this is the best comp after the IPL. So, I wanted to play some real competitive cricket and I don’t think there is better tournament than this. B) I always wanted to be part of the Royals setup. A lot of my friends played in the Royals setup so when the offer came along, I was more than happy to accept it,” a wired-up Karthik told the commentators during the match.
“A lot of good talent out here. First couple of days, when I came ut here, I was pretty amazed to see how much talent is out here. Couple of guys not playing as well. Its a good squad, a good tournament, really looking forward to gelling with the boys here,” he added.
Karthik became eligible to play in the tournament after announcing his retirement from Indian cricket.
Under the current BCCI policy, Indian players are only permitted to participate in overseas leagues after retiring from all formats of the game, including the IPL.
