"The chase for the dream shall continue" - Dinesh Karthik sends a message to RCB fans after early exit from IPL 2023

Dinesh Karthik has expressed his gratitude to the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) fans for their support in IPL 2023. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter also mentioned that the chase for the dream to become IPL champions will continue next year.

RCB failed to qualify for the IPL 2023 playoffs last Sunday. They faced table-toppers Gujarat Titans (GT) in a do-or-die match at home. Had RCB defeated GT, they would have finished fourth in the standings. However, Bangalore lost the game and had to settle for the sixth spot.

Dinesh Karthik had a forgettable season with the bat this year. He managed only 140 runs in 13 matches, with his batting average being 11.67.

Taking to Twitter after RCB's early exit from IPL 2023, Karthik wrote:

"We couldn’t live up to the expectations and the results didn’t go our way. The chase for the dream shall continue….Thanks to all the fans who stand tall with the us through thick and thin…you mean the world to us always!"

Dinesh Karthik recorded 2 ducks in his last 2 innings of IPL 2023

As mentioned earlier, Dinesh Karthik did not have his best IPL season in 2023. The veteran wicketkeeper-batter played a match-winning role for the Royal Challengers Bangalore last season and scored 330 runs at an average of 55. His strike rate was also more than 180, while he recorded one half-century as well.

This year, Karthik's aggregate was 140 runs at an average of 11.67 and a strike rate of 134.62. He recorded four ducks in the tournament, with two of them coming in his last two innings against the Rajasthan Royals and the Gujarat Titans.

Fans had high hopes from the wicketkeeper-batter after his heroics last season, but he could not deliver the goods in IPL 2023. It will be interesting to see if RCB retain him for the 2024 season.