Mumbai: Former India captain Sourav Ganguly took him under his wings and gave him a break for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the inaugural edition of Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2008. Ashok Dinda – who now plays for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) – is an IPL veteran now. But everytime he has turned out for a franchise, including KKR till 2010, the team has ended up in the bottom four.
The right-handed seamer’s KKR journey was average. He picked up 21 wickets in 29 appearances but the much hyped Shah Rukh Khan co-owned team finished sixth in 2008, eighth in 2009 and sixth in 2010.
In 2011, Delhi Daredevils roped him in and well, the franchise ended up being 10th – even behind newbies Pune Warriors India and Kochi Tuskers Kerala. Dinda picked up five wickets in six matches.
Call it fate or Ganguly’s affection towards him, Dinda found a place in Pune Warriors India in 2012. The franchise – led by one of the most successful Indian captains ever – finished ninth in the tournament. Dinda was retained and in 2013, they finished eighth.
The speedster, then, moved to the much plush RCB in 2014. Though under a star skipper like Virat Kohli, the outfit could not do much last season and finished seventh. Despite the presence of Chris Gayle, AB de Villiers – RCB missed the play-off spot.
In 2015, they are still fighting for a spot in the knockout stage. Dinda is steaming in.
