Until around a month back, Dinesh Karthik was not even a part of the names that were being discussed for the wicketkeeper-batter's slot in India's squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup. In Jitesh Sharma, Sanju Samson, KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, and Ishan Kishan, India had as many as five options to choose from, and Karthik was not one of them.
As it turns out, with barely a month and a half remaining before the T20 World Cup, Karthik is suddenly back into the fray once again, and is probably a hot prospect for a berth in India's squad ahead of most of those five names mentioned earlier. The reason behind that is his spectacular batting form in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 season.
Even though his team Royal Challengers Bengaluru are going through a terrible run, having lost six of the seven matches they have played so far, Karthik is still standing tall amidst their ruins.
DK Has One Last Dance Left in Him a
The IPL 2023 season did not turn out to be good for Karthik. He amassed only 140 runs at a dismal average of 11.67, with his underwhelming returns being among the reasons why RCB could not make it to the playoffs. Understandably, the doors to the Indian team had almost shut on him after that lean patch. He was mostly seen engaged in commentary gigs around the world and it seemed like the end of his playing career was quite near.
Cut to the present, Karthik's performances are screaming out loud that he is not done yet. That, he has more to offer to the Indian team. That, he has one last dance left in him.
In seven matches thus far in this IPL edition, Karthik has already amassed 226 runs — 86 runs more than his overall tally last season — at an outstanding average of 75.33 and a strike rate of 205.45. That includes a whirlwind 35-ball 83 against Sunrisers Hyderabad & a 23-ball 53 against MI, albeit in losing causes.
If we refine these numbers further, 137 of these runs have come in the death overs (17-20) – at an average of 68.5 and an even better strike rate of 253.7. Among players who have faced a minimum of 20 balls in the death overs this season, only Tristan Stubbs (280), Abdul Samad (262.96) and Heinrich Klaasen (254.76) have a better strike rate than that of the 38-year-old Karthik.
The Numbers Look Good, the Display is Even Better
As good as these numbers look, you wouldn't know how well he is playing unless you have watched him. It is a work of art – the way he is blending touch play and finesse with power and aggression to construct his knocks. Pure box-office stuff!
On a night when Jasprit Bumrah decided to unleash his fury on the RCB batters with a breathtaking five-wicket haul, Karthik looked in no mood to bow down as he ended Bumrah's spell with a delightful lofted cover drive for a six.
A peek at his matchup with Bumrah reveals that he has never bowed down to the ace Indian pacer, who is undoubtedly also the best bowler of this generation. Karthik has faced 37 balls from Bumrah in T20s and he has smashed 68 runs off those at a strike rate of 183.78, without being dismissed even once.
These are astonishing numbers to brag about and many of the world's best batters cannot even claim to have that. To put things into perspective, Bumrah has even dismissed Virat Kohli five times in his T20 career, and here he is looking all clueless against Karthik.
This is enough to sum up Karthik's class and quality as a batter.
Dinesh Karthik Perfectly Fits the Bill in the Indian Team
It is true that he has not quite had the international career he was expected to enjoy. Most of his outings for India have resulted in pretty average and mediocre performances, with the only major highlight of his career being the Nidahas Trophy final win against Bangladesh, where he took India over the line with another excellent lofted cover drive off Soumya Sarkar in the last delivery of the match.
Karthik's career was expected to take off after that at least, but it only kept spiralling downward. Here, he has a chance of redeeming himself though. What India require from their wicketkeeper-batter heading into the T20 World Cup is exactly the skillset he is known for.
Most of the other available options apart from Jitesh Sharma and Rishabh Pant – like Sanju Samson, KL Rahul and Ishan Kishan – are top-order batters. Jitesh is making his case tough with a string of low scores. Pant's return has been encouraging, but his T20I batting numbers after 66 matches do not inspire much confidence either. From the top-order options, only Sanju Samson has performed consistently thus far.
However, India's top five looks packed right now with Rohit Sharma, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, and Hardik Pandya set to occupy those slots. So, India need someone who can fulfil the demanding role of a number 6 or 7. That is where Karthik perfectly fits the bill, as he is playing the same role for RCB right now.
Selectors Should Not Mind Giving DK Another Chance
While it's true that Karthik couldn't make an impact for India in T20 World Cup 2022, scoring only 14 runs in four innings at a meagre average of 4.66 and dismal strike rate of 63.63, after being selected for the mega event on the back of an equally successful IPL season that year, his current form suggests that he deserves another chance to redeem himself and bring glory to India.
“I am not done yet. I have a goal. I want to achieve something and I'll try my best in terms of preparation.” – This is the promise he made in IPL 2022, just before the last T20 World Cup. He could not fulfil it back then. It resulted in a heartbreak.
But here is destiny offering him another shot at glory - a second chance! And going purely by his current form and skillset, the selectors shouldn't mind giving him one.
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