Who is KC Cariappa? Know former KKR and Karnataka spinner who burst into IPL 2015

The question of who KC Cariappa came to everyone’s mind when the Kolkata Knight Riders, the defending champions of the IPL 2015, put up a massive price of INR 2.4 crore, which was 24 times his base price of the leg spinner in that year’s auction. Curiously, both the BCCI and the Karnataka State Cricket Association had him listed as an off-break bowler.

At five feet 11 inches, the Karanatakaleg spinner is tall for any other spinners and bowls with an orthodox random action as the leg break is his stock delivery with variations like the googly and the faster ones. His other strength that could make it difficult for the batters to read him is his ability to bowl off-spinners without changing the grip.

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The 31-year-old decided to take his retirement from Indian cricket with 75 wickets in just fourteen first-class games at an average of 23.20, thanks to his five four-wicket and six five-wicket hauls at the best figures of 7/69 in an innings.

Know former KKR and PBKS spinner- Karnataka’s KC Cariappa

It was 2021 when he was not picked for the Karnataka side in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT), before he aimed for redemption when he was picked for the Rajasthan Royals but did not feature in a single game of the season.

“It was a very depressing period for me when I was not part of the Karnataka team earlier this year. I did well last year in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, but after that, things became bad for me. I was just roaming around in Bengaluru, and my fitness had taken a toll, but that is when Zubin (Bharucha) sir called me to ask me to come for the IPL trials. I was shocked that someone was asking me to come for trials because I had been lost for one year.” Cariappa claimed.  

“Zubin sir then called me and said, 'I've been following you since 2015, but what is wrong with you? What is wrong with your fitness? We like your bowling, but you have to get your fitness right.' And that was the moment when I found the motivation again, and I worked really hard to get back into shape. So I'm really thankful to him and to the Rajasthan Royals franchise.” The leg spinner concluded.