KC Kariappa, the little known spinner from Bengaluru made headlines in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2015 auctions after KKR bought him on the back of some fine performance in a zonal T20 league. He was 21-year old then. While his IPL career didn’t take off, he shared his experiences recently alongside his debut under the captain Gautam Gambhir and recalled the memories as well.

“Gambhir was a very good captain. He was a little strict in terms of bowling discipline, and effort on the field was something he wouldn’t compromise,” Cariappa told Sportskeeda. “Outside the field, he didn’t bother you. On the field, you had to give your 100% and that’s what I loved.”

Notably, Cariappa’s maiden wicket was none other than the legend AB de Villiers. However, later was replaced by Sunil Narine who soon came in the limelight with his stunning bowling.

However, he revealed that he didn’t get too many chances in the IPL even when he had played for Kings XI Punjab (now Punjab Kings). He had played only a few games for the franchise. Meanwhile, he shared that he felt there wasn’t a proper balance in his performance which saw a poor show in his game as well.

“But like everyone says, more the matches, higher the confidence. I still remember the first match I played, there were 1 lakh people in the Eden Gardens crowd, it was surreal. I would love to get more matches in the seasons to come and re-live those moments,” he signed off.

However, his stint with Kings XI Punjab (Now Punjab Kings) didn’t stay long and as of the 2021 edition of the cash-rich Indian premier League, he is playing for the Rajasthan Royals franchise. He did exceptionally well while playing in the Karnataka Premier League where he has been playing for Bijapur Bulls and that’s where he was first noticed by IPL scouts as well.