[WATCH]- RCB Support Staff Reunites With Former KKR Teammates Before IPL 2025 Opener

Former India wicketkeeper-batter and Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s batting coach, Dinesh Karthik, reunited with some of his former Kolkata Knight Riders teammates ahead of the IPL 2025 opener on March 22. The match is set to take place at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens.

Karthik was part of the KKR squad for four seasons, from 2018 to 2021. He initially captained the team but stepped down midway through the 2020 season, passing the leadership to Eoin Morgan. In 2021, he continued as a wicketkeeper-batter before being released ahead of the auction.

KKR’s official social media handle shared a video of Karthik catching up with members of the KKR support staff. He also interacted with spinner Varun Chakaravarthy and vice-captain Venkatesh Iyer. You can watch the video here:

A reunion that hits different! 🤝💜 pic.twitter.com/4x4blzs5yF

— KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) March 21, 2025

Dinesh Karthik’s IPL stats for both KKR and RCB

Dinesh Karthik is among the many Indian cricketers who have represented three or more IPL franchises. The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter amassed 1,143 runs in 61 matches for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

As KKR’s captain from 2018 to 2020, he led the team in 37 matches, securing 19 victories. Under his leadership, KKR made it to the playoffs only once, in 2018. The 39-year-old had two stints with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB)—first in 2015 and then from 2022 to 2024.

After retiring at the end of his second spell, he transitioned into the role of batting coach. Across both tenures, Karthik scored 937 runs for RCB, won the Super Striker of the Year award in 2022, and even earned a recall to the Indian team at the age of 37.

KKR squad: Ajinkya Rahane (c), Venkatesh Iyer (vc), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Varun Chakaravarthy, Harshit Rana, Ramandeep Singh, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Quinton de Kock (wk), Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Mayank Markande, Anrich Nortje, Vaibhav Arora, Manish Pandey, Luvnith Sisodia (wk), Anukul Roy, Rovman Powell, Moeen Ali, Chetan Sakariya, Spencer Johnson

RCB squad: Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar (c), Swastik Chikara, Devdutt Padikkal, Jitesh Sharma, Philip Salt, Manoj Bhandage, Tim David, Krunal Pandya, Liam Livingstone, Romario Shepherd, Jacob Bethell, Swapnil Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Nuwan Thushara, Lungi Ngidi, Yash Dayal, Rasikh Dar Salam, Suyash Sharma, Mohit Rathee, Abhinandan Singh.

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