What happens when a Tamil Nadu lad is not picked by a franchise from his state? It feels like a dagger in the heart and that's what Dinesh Karthik felt.

Recalling the heartbreaking story from 2008, the wicketkeeper-batsman said it’s been 13 years and he is still waiting for a call from Chennai Super Kings (CSK).

Karthik believed he would be CSK's first pick as he was a big name already and was playing for the national side. 

However, the now Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) skipper said it was a shock when MS Dhoni was picked by the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise in 2008. 

“In 2008, I was in Australia and the auction was happening. In the lead up to that, I was convinced that the biggest name from Tamil Nadu who is also playing for the country…I’m sure they (Chennai Super Kings) are going to pick me. The question is whether they are going to make me the captain or not…that was going on in my head. And the first name they picked as Dhoni, for 1.5 million and he was sitting right around the corner with me. And he didn’t even tell me that they are going to pick him.

"Probably he didn’t know. But that was the biggest dagger to my heart. So I thought that they would pick me later. It’s been 13 years and I am still waiting for that elusive call from CSK,” said Karthik while picking his all-time IPL XI during a conversation with Cricbuzz.

Karthik was eventually roped in by Delhi Daredevils in 2008 - where he played three seasons - before he moved to Mumbai Indians.