Veteran Team India batter Dinesh Karthik has been receiving praises from all corners for his terrific performances as a finisher. Riding on the back of his stellar performances for Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 2022 edition of the Indian Premier League, Dinesh Karthik forced his way back to the national cricket team and he has continued his terrific form in the Indian colors as well.
Karthik came into the IPL 2022, not just with a goal of returning back to the Indian set-up but also with a goal of making it to the playing XI for the upcoming T20I World Cup, which is scheduled to take place later this year in Australia. And it won’t be wrong to say that he has been hitting all the right notes to make it to the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup 2022.
Dinesh Karthik Played A Fiery Knock
Dinesh Karthik, who made his comeback to the national cricket team after a long gap of 3 years, has carried the Indian side the same way he carried RCB in IPL 2022. On Friday, Karthik came in at No. 6 when team India was in a tough situation and needed someone who could play shots to get them to a competitive total on a tough wicket. While the likes of Shreyas Iyer, Ishan Kishan, Ruturaj Gaikwad and Rishabh Pant failed to perform, it felt like DK was playing on a different surface.
DK smashed his maiden fifty in the shortest format of the game, which came after a long wait of 16 years after he made his India debut in T20I is in 2006. All thanks to his 50, team India was able to put up a competitive total on the scoreboard.
DK was well accompanied by Hardik Pandya from the other end. The duo took India from 56 in the first 10 overs to 113 runs in the last 10 overs, as they together smashed the Proteas bowlers to all the corners of the ground. Karthik smashed 9 fours and 2 sixes in his stellar knock of 55 runs.
Ashish Nehra Hailed DK
Meanwhile, former Indian cricketer and Gujarat Titans head coach Ashish Nehra hailed DK’s performance. Nehra expressed that it is never easy when you are a senior player but he made sure to score impactful runs. He said:
“It’s never easy for a senior player to make such a comeback. He did start off well in the series, but was in search of a big knock. While he had been scoring impactful runs, it was good to see him bat at No. 6 today and score a half-century. You expect this from an experienced player. He was chosen as a finisher, but he also knows how to steady the ship when needed. The team management will be very happy with his performance.”
He added: “South Africa’s bowling wasn’t up to the mark when Dinesh Karthik was batting. But the reputation of a player like him forces the opposition to make such errors. More than the bowler, he is playing according to the field. When the square-leg and fine-leg were in the circle, he was looking to play over them right from the beginning,”
