Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has hailed Dinesh Karthik’s comeback into India’s T20I side. Chopra added that not a lot of people had put their money on Karthik and asked him to go home. However, the veteran batsman had a fantastic run in the IPL as he scored 330 runs at an average of 55 and a strike rate of 183.33 while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Consequently, he was able to get a call-up into the Indian squad for the five-match T20I series against South Africa. Karthik has been consistently adding the finishing touches and he has been doing a fine job for the team.
The right-hander had also scored 41 runs off just 19 balls in the first T20I against the West Indies.
Karthik has been scoring at a high strike rate while batting in the lower middle order and he is ticking the right boxes in his batting.
Aakash Chopra said while talking on his YouTube Channel, “He is finished, he will not come now to play, how will he get a place now, this is a game of youngsters, a lot of people asked him to go home, that it’s over. In fact, I also felt what he is doing is not going to be possible.”
“But as they say, one who dares never loses. One who doesn’t accept defeat, that player definitely wins. Dinesh Karthik the finisher, he has reinvented the wheel. The fire is burning, don’t let that fire extinguish. This story is not over yet.”
Chopra feels the fastest route to get back into the Indian team is to score a lot of runs in the IPL. However, since Karthik was batting in the lower middle order for RCB, he was not going to win the Orange Cap.
“He batted at different numbers but suddenly he realized that he doesn’t want to be in the top three to five batters although if you want to play for India the fastest route is that you get the Orange Cap, score a lot of runs in the IPL.”
“The history of the Orange Cap shows that you will have to bat in the top three else you won’t get it. But he said no problem, he will chart a different course. He started batting down the order. Finishing is the most difficult job. Found a new wind as a very difficult thing. He is making you bowl where he wants you to bowl.”
Karthik will be seen in action in the Asia Cup. India will begin their campaign against arch-rivals Pakistan at Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai on 28th August.
