South African pacer Dale Steyn will not be representing Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021, having pulled out of the upcoming edition of the tournament. "Cricket tweet. Just a short message to let everyone know that I've made myself unavailable for RCB at this years IPL, I'm also not planning on playing for another team, just taking some time off during that period. Thank you to RCB for understanding. No I'm not retired," Dale Steyn tweeted.
The Bangalore-based franchise reacted to this decision by Steyn, thanking him for the memories. "You will be missed, Dale Steyn! Thank you for the memories and keep rooting for us," read the response from the official Twitter handle of RCB.
Steyn was signed by the Bangalore-based franchise ahead of the 2020 edition. IPL 2020 took place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), after being shifted out of India due to COVID-19. The 37-year-old picked one wicket in three matches.
RCB eventually finished fourth on the table, after being eliminated in the playoffs by SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH).
Steyn retired from Test cricket in 2019, finishing as South Africa's highest wicket-taker in the longest format of the game. The 37-year-old has picked 196 wickets in 125 matches at an average of 25.95 and strike rate of 31.9 so far.
The fast-bowler was most recently seen in action in the Lanka Premier League (LPL) where he represented the Kandy Tuskers.