My aim is to play for the country in T20 World Cup as a finisher: Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik made his debut for India in 2004, earlier than MS Dhoni. However, unlike the latter, he failed to cement his spot in the Indian team. There have been periods in his international career when he has done exceedingly well but in some time, his form dropped and he was left out. Something similar happened to him after the 2019 World Cup. 

He played for India in the semi-final, where he batted at no. 5, with minimal returns. This resulted in him getting dropped, which seemed like a decision taken by the selectors considering Karthik’s age. However, the Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batsman has revealed that he is hopeful that he can make a comeback in the Indian squad for the T20 World Cups which are scheduled in 2021 and 2022. 

Karthik revived his international career in early 2018 with his 8-ball 29* knock which helped India beat Bangladesh in the Nidahas Trophy final. This gave him a reputation as a finisher and T20 specialist. Since then, he has done well in the format. He has emerged as one of the more skilled T20 batsmen in the IPL and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, where he led Tamil Nadu to a title win earlier this year. 

Because the World Cup did not go well, I got chucked out of the T20: Dinesh Karthik

“What they want to see is not the age but how fit you are. If you can get through the fitness tests, it means you are ready to play for the country. My aim is to play for the country in the T20 World Cups. There are back-to-back T20 World Cups, this year and the next year, and I am doing everything I can to be a part of that,” Karthik told Cricket Next in an interview.

Karthik’s run in the IPL 2020 and 2021 hasn’t been that great but as an experienced player, he could be a valuable asset for India in the middle order during the T20 World Cup. Karthik expressed that he did well in T20Is until the 2019 World Cup.

“I know I have done really well in the past and even when I got dropped from the team after the World Cup, I thought I had done phenomenally well for India in T20s up till then, but because the World Cup did not go well, I got chucked out of the T20 as well.”

The cricketer further noted that there are finishers in Hardik Pandya and Ravindra Jadeja, but he is eyeing the role of the middle-order specialist batsman who can also finish the game, a role which he has been perfecting in T20s since he revived his career.