Dinesh Karthik has seemingly taken a sly dig at former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri after scoring a stunning fifty in the fourth T20I against South Africa in Rajkot on Friday (June 17).
Karthik returned to the team for the ongoing series after a long gap of three years thanks to his performance in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL). Prior to the ongoing series, his last appearance for India had come in the 2019 World Cup.
Having featured in India’s first-ever T20I back in 2006, Karthik scored his maiden fifty in the shortest format of the game on Friday. The veteran batsman slammed 55 off just 27 balls to help India win the game.
His whirlwind knock was studded with 9 fours and 2 sixes as he bailed India out of trouble. India were reeling at 81 for 4 in the 13th over when Karthik joined Hardik Pandya in the middle. The 150-run mark was looking like a distance dream at that time.
Karthik and Pandya, however, launched a stunning assault to help India post a competitive total of 169. Karthik raced to his fifty off just 26 balls and was out in the final over. On the other hand, Pandya scored 46 off 31 balls before departing in the 19th over.
‘Very secure in this setup’:
Following the game, Dinesh Karthik did not mince his words while speaking at the post match presentation as he stated that he feels secured in the current set up. He singled out current coach Rahul Dravid for praise and said that the current coach’s arrival has brought calmness to the dressing room.
Karthik further said that the clarity of roles and the current environment in the dressing room has helped him. His comments have made it clear that he was not getting the same calmness and environment in the previous setup when Shastri was the coach.
“Just feels good. I am feeling very secure in this setup. In the last game things didn’t go according to plan, but I went and expressed myself today. I think DK is thinking a little better. He is able to assess situations better and that comes with practice. Credit to my coach,” said Dinesh Karthik.
“Credit to Rahul Dravid; there is a certain sense of calmness. The dressing room is a calm place right now. It is important to learn to embrace pressure. It feels secure and fuzzy. That clarity and the environment helped,” he added.
Dinesh Karthik’s heroics lead India to win:
Talking about the game, India thrashed the Proteas by 82 runs to draw level in the five-match series. The Men in Blue needed to win the game at any cost to avoid a series defeat and they delivered in style.
Thanks to Dinesh Karthik and Pandya’s fine knocks, the hosts scored 169 for 6 in the allotted 20 overs. For the Proteas, Lungi Ngidi was the pick of the bowlers, taking 2 for 20 off 3 overs.
After Karthik and Pandya’s heroics, India’s bowlers rose to the occasion and put up a fine show to bowl out the visitors for a paltry total of 87. Rassie van der Dussen was the only South Africa batsman to touch the 20-run mark while Quinton de Kock (14) and Marco Jansen (12) were the only other batters to cross the double-digit mark.
South Africa kept losing wickets at regular intervals and were eventually all out for 87. For India, fast-bowler Avesh Khan was the star with the ball. The right-arm pacer picked up 4 wickets for just 18 runs off his 4 overs while Yuzvendra Chahal picked up 2 for 21. The fifth and final T20I is scheduled to take place in Bengaluru on Sunday (June 19).