Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) wicketkeeper batter Dinesh Karthik opened up on his love-hate relationship with the franchise’s fanbase saying that the same fans who once adore you, start to abuse you once you failed to perform.
Karthik is one of the very few players who have been actively participating in the IPL ever since its commencement in 2008 and has played for multiple franchises throughout the years.
However, despite playing for teams like Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Mumbai Indians (MI), Karthik never managed to have a relationship as good as he has with RCB’s fans. It is no surprise that RCB has one of the biggest fanbases in India.
Talking in a YouTube video, the 38-year-old revealed that RCB fans are loyal but that is in both, the good and bad ways.
"RCB fans are loyalists. They are actually family, and I say that in good and bad ways. The good way is that when you go, no matter what happens, if I walk in, they will cheer my name and make me feel like I'm the greatest player on Earth,” Karthik said on YouTube.
“What I mean by that is that to the outside world, they will never give up on you. If there is a fight between say you know some team and they say, “Oh, X is not a good player,” they will pounce on that person.
"For them, it is very special, and what a fan base they have for a team that has been competing for 16 years! unreal fan base that they have, as I said. I've been part of many teams. You know all of them have fans, but RCB is incredible.”
However, just like love, the fanbase also criticises the players when things go south and Karthik discussed the same issue saying that the same fans who were cheering for me, would abuse me and my family whenever I fail to perform.
"On a personal level, that same fan will abuse me silently in DMs every day, rather than on a one-on-one note. He will go hard at me if I don't do well for RCB; he will smash me, not just me, my family, and whoever is possible in my life. But to the outside world, They will not give up an RCB player," Karthik added.
- Dinesh Karthik