Fame to misfortune: Former K’taka spinner Cariappa’s story of grit

FORMER Karnataka mystery spinner KC Cariappa had all the ingredients in becoming Varun Chakravarthy before Chakravarthy even entered public consciousness. From the high of the IPL auction in 2015 to the low of being dropped by his state, Cariappa’s eventful life now enters a new chapter. Earlier this year, Cariappa announced his retirement from BCCI cricket. “My last tournament was the 25/26 Vijay Hazare Trophy (for Mizoram). After that, I appeared for a few IPL selection trials (he did not receive any call-ups). I was thinking about whether to continue playing in the BCCI’s domestic circuit or look out for opportunities elsewhere.” he saiStarting at a base price of `10 lakh in the 2015 auction, the Knight Riders and the Delhi Daredevils (now Capitals) had a bidding war, which went all the way to `2.4 crore. “That was very good money for our family. My thought process was to do well, so when I joined the team ahead of the season, I was completely into it,” he said.His purchase came at a time where West-Indian mystery spinner Sunil Narine was reported for a suspect action during the season. Cariappa’s moment had come, and it came against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in front of over 60,000 people at the Eden Gardens.He could not have seized the moment any better. In the two overs he was given, he got the prized scalp of AB de Villiers. However, that ended up being the only match he played for KKR that season. “Narine was cleared to return and then I didn’t get to play. I was hoping that I will get more chances but unfortunately I didn’t get any, but I was focused on my training.”DepressionHe is now set to travel back to the UK in April to play for Mildenhall for six months. “My basic aim is to play in Caribbean Premier League, United States’ Major League Cricket, SA20 as well as The Hundred,” he said. Just like how his colleagues were guiding him in tough times, Cariappa in the near future will be hoping to share his wisdom to budding talents

The spinner was part of the Karnataka team that won their first Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in 2019, where he took 10 wickets in 11 games. That earned him the attention of KKR as an injury replacement for Shivam Mavi. But again, chances never came. He only played one match that season, where he went wicketless against Hyderabad.Then, I got dropped from the Karnataka team as well. I had a complete breakdown. I felt really bad,” he said. Cariappa put on weight, and lost motivation. Once a happy-go-lucky Bengaluru teen, Cariappa’s life descended into darkness. But he did not give up. “I did really well again in KPL (and in SMAT 2021, where he took 12 wickets). Then, Rajasthan Royals came calling and Zubin Bharucha, one of the coaches, had assured me a spot in the team given I work on my weight,” he said. Apart from working his way back, Cariappa had a confidante who guided him through this process. “I kept talking to AR Srikanth, who was the video analyst in KKR and in Bijapur Bulls of the