Another blow to Indian cricketing was a retirement announcement by domestic saltwart who has established himself in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Krishnappa Gowtham.
On Monday (December 22), the all-rounder held a press brief at Bengaluru M Chinnaswamy Stadium and announced his retirement.
K Gowtham Announces Retirement
“I have to inform you that I am retiring from first-class and international cricket. I have been extremely proud and happy to serve my country and the state of Karnataka. I have been a man of comebacks; I have come back to the edge of the precipice more than once, and I might have done it again. But to have come into the Karnataka team again, would have been unjust to the youngsters, the future of the game, had I been brought in to read a statement,” said Gowtham.
Krishnappa Gowtham retired from cricket today. His 11-ball 33 against Mumbai Indians, where he won it single-handedly for Rajasthan,is unforgettable.
Interestingly, in that match, RR had sent him to bat even below Jofra Archer!
Thank you for being a part of the CSK family 🙏 pic.twitter.com/7DodDCwIKk
— Neeraj (@NeerajY00859341) December 22, 2025
From Record IPL Price to Retirement: The Journey of K Gowtham
The 37-year-old, who is a native of Karnataka, played one ODI against Sri Lanka in 2021 at Colombo on behalf of India.
This was a one-run one-wicket right-arm off-spinner. He is a legend in domestic cricket and has participated in 59 first-class matches where he has scored 224 wickets. He made 96 wickets in 59 matches in List A cricket.
Three-Time IPL Champion Without Playing
He began his IPL career with the Mumbai Indians (MI) in 2017, where he was bought by the team at Rs. 2 crores 2017. Gowtham joined the title winning squad but never had a single appearance. He was bought by the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2018 at a price of Rs. 6.2 crores a year later. In the 2018 season, he worked 15 games and received 11 wickets and 126 runs. In 2019, he scored 11 runs and had one wicket.
Gowtham was traded to the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in 2020 and appeared in two games scoring 42 and 1 wicket respectively.
Let’s rewind and relive some of Krishnappa Gowtham’s heroics in every facet of the game🧵
He excelled with the ball across formats. Who can ever forget that ice-cold final over in the SMAT 2019 final, sealing a 1-run win for Karnataka. Pure clutch🔥pic.twitter.com/JGe4ItJaoL
— Karnataka Sports Fans (@karnataka_sport) December 22, 2025
He was subsequently sold by Chennai Super Kings (a record price at that time) at Rs. 9.25 Crores as an uncapped player in the history of IPL. Gowthan also contributed to the MS Dhoni-led team winning the 2021 season but just as was the case with MI in 2017, he did not feature in any single match.
In 2022, LSG signed him at Rs. 90 Lakhs and kept him in their team of three years, where he played 12 games. He got eight wickets and made 102 runs.
