IPL 2021 | Weighed around 95 kgs, was lost and depressed for almost a year, says RR's KC Cariappa

KC Cariappa was surprised when he was called for IPL trials by the Royals as he was away from the game for the last 12 months before he was bought by the franchisee in February this year at his base price of Rs 20 lakh. He impressed the top official Zubin Bharucha with his bowling.  

“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 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, but after that, things became bad for me”, said the mystery spinner

“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 to come for the IPL trials. I was shocked that someone is asking me to come for trials because I was lost almost for one year and weighed around 95kgs then. However, I went for it and bowled well”, Cariappa added. 

Bharucha asked the 27-year-old to work on his fitness. He told him about how he was following his game since 2015. 

“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 for showing faith in me. I feel that I’m back on my feet because of them and now it’s time to repay that faith on the field”, an emotional Cariappa expressed. 

The 27-year-old spinner has played only handful of matches in the IPL for Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings with eight wickets in 11 games at an economy rate of 9.66.