Proteas fast bowler Dale Steyn said that he turned down this year's Indian Premier League because he found other T20 leagues more rewarding.

Steyn is currently in Karachi with the Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League.

The speedster stated that the "cricket often gets forgotten" during the lucrative IPL tournament.

Proteas fast bowler Dale Steyn explained his decision to skip this year's Indian Premier League (IPL), stating he found playing in other T20 leagues was "more rewarding as a player".

Steyn, who did not feature in the domestic T20 Challenge, is in Karachi for the Quetta Gladiators in the Pakistan Super League (PSL).

Earlier this year, Steyn confirmed via Twitter that he would not be competing in this year's IPL and was released by the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Since its inaugural edition in 2008, Steyn has played in 95 IPL games and taken 97 wickets at an average of 25.85.

In an interview with Pakistan Cricket, Steyn revealed that he turned his back on the lucrative IPL as he believes that "cricket gets forgotten".

"I wanted some time off. I found that playing in these other leagues was slightly more rewarding as a player," Steyn told Saleem Khaliq.

"I think when you go to IPL, there are such big squads and so many big names and so much emphasis on maybe the amount of money players earn and everything like that, so sometimes, somewhere down the line, cricket gets forgotten."