KC Cariappa

Konganda Charamanna Cariappa, commonly known as KC Cariappa came to recognition as a mystery spinner in the Karnataka Premier League (KPL), who had various tricks in his bags. A 6-feet tall spinner hailing from Bangalore made a million dollars during the 2015 IPL season where Kolkata Knight Riders picked the spinner for his variations like googly and carrom ball. 

As a 17-year-old, Cariappa began his journey as a fast-bowler, but later switched to leg spin for good. In 2014, he played for Karnataka’s Under-19 side in the Cooch Behar Trophy and then started for Bijapur Bulls in KPL season where he finished the tournament as the third-highest wicket-taker. He picked up 11 wickets at an economy of 6. He was also named in the 30-probables for his state’s Ranji Trophy team, but wasn’t included in the final squad. 

After his shot-to-fame KPL season, the spinner was called by KKR for trials where the then skipper, Gautam Gambhir found it very hard to pick Cariappa’s variations, that led to the franchise picking him in the 2015 auctions for INR 2.4 crores. The mystery spinner got just a single game that season but got rid of AB de Villiers. 

In the next season, he was picked by Kings XI Punjab (Now known as Punjab Kings), where he got a handful of opportunities but couldn’t stamp his authority. In 2019, KKR replaced him with an injured Shivam Mavi, on the back of a successful Syed Mushtaq Ali season. 

In February 2021, Rajasthan Royals bought KC Cariappa for his base price of INR 20 lakhs in the mini-auctions ahead of IPL 2021. The 14th edition can be a golden opportunity for the leg spinner who has lost prominence due to emergence of Krishnappa Gowtham and Shreyas Gopal in the Karnataka setup.He was recently signed up by Rajasthan Royals (RR) for a sum of INR 20 Lakhs in the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) auction. The leggie has had a brilliant domestic season and is likely to come in handy on slow Indian tracks.

(As of March 2022)