Ravi Shastri on Dinesh Karthik’s chance to cement his position: India need a wicketkeeper who will play MS Dhoni’s role
India Today
Dinesh Karthik made his comeback to the Indian limited-overs team after performing well for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2022.
Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri said that Dinesh Karthik has a golden chance of cementing his place as a finisher in the limited-overs team during the five-match T20I series against South Africa. Karthik was outstanding for the Faf du Plessis-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL).
On the back of his performances for the Challengers, the 36-year-old Karthik found his way back into the national team after a gap of three years. Shastri clearly said that Indian cricket needs someone who has the potential to finish games off for their teams, similar to what MS Dhoni did.
“This is his opportunity. If and when he gets an opportunity in these games, he has to do it with India colours on. We know he has got the experience, so this becomes extremely vital,” Shastri was quoted as saying on Star Sports.
“You have to see from the team’s point of view, what are they looking for? Do they want a keeper who will bat at the top of the order or do they want a keeper who will be the finisher? I will go for the latter. You need a keeper who will do MS Dhoni’s role, let’s put it that way,” he stated.
“There is already Rishabh Pant who can bat in the top four or five in T20 cricket, but you want someone who can keep and finish a game because there aren’t too many finishers now with MS (Dhoni) having quit. So, I think that’s where his chances are very very good,” Shastri added.
Karthik last played for the Indian cricket team in the semi-final of the 2019 World Cup against New Zealand at Old Trafford in Manchester. In IPL 2022, Karthik scored 330 runs from 16 matches at an average of 55 and a strike-rate of 183.33 with a top score of an unbeaten 66.
The T20I series against South Africa is set to start on Thursday, June 6 with the first match at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
