Preparatory to the inaugural Player auction of the ILT20, the Sharjah Warriorz have strengthened their team with the addition of the exciting Indian wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik. One of the most experienced and high-voltage cricketers in the game, he takes the place of the Sri Lankan Kusal Mendis, in the JP Duminy led Sharjah Warriorz team. One of the smartest brains in the sport of cricket, particularly in the shorter versions, Karthik's legacy and brilliance is well known. An IPL winner with Mumbai Indians in 2013, Karthik was also part of the Indian team that won both the first 2007 T20 World Cup and the 2013 ICC Champions Trophy. In recent years, Karthik was part of the leadership unit, as the batting coach, for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru side, which won their first IPL title in 2025. Fortuitously, with RCB in IPL 2025, Karthik had assisted closely with big-hitting Tim David, one of the Sharjah Warriorz's overseas players in Season 4 of the ILT20. Also Read | Rachin Ravindra Suffers Facial Injury Ahead of Australia Clash From Tamil Nadu, Karthik, who started his cricketing career abroad in 2004, is famous for his skills as a finisher. Most often found to be the aggressor in the closing stages of a T20 match, the ex-KKR skipper's six-hitting prowess, never-say-die spirit, and all-around penchant for scoring around the wicket, will add further depth to the Sharjah Warriorz's batting lineup. In a career spanning two decades, Karthik has featured in 412 T20 matches, played 364 innings, scored 7,437 runs, with 35 half-centuries to his credit and a strike-rate of 136.66. In the India jersey, he has played 60 T201 matches, played 48 and ended up scoring 686 runs at a strike-rate of 142.61. At Sharjah Warriorz, Dinesh Karthik will not just be joining RCB teammate Tim David, but Sikandar Raza as well, the latter having led the Dubai Capitals to ILT20 victory last season. The troika will be part of Captain Tim Southee, Johnson Charles, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, and Saurabh Netravalkar.