Seven of Dinesh Karthik's finest quotes

Dinesh Karthik is making a smooth transition from professional cricket to punditry. The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batsman was first seen in the commentary box in the ICC World Test Championship 2021 final in June. There he shared the commentary box with some legends and fans loved every bit of his maiden stint. Earlier this year, he was also an expert on Sky Sports for England’s tour of India. 

After this, he was a part of the Sky Sports commentary panel, which consisted of some legendary names such as Michael Atherton, Michael Holding, Nasser Hussain, Ian Ward, Kumar Sangakkara, David Lloyd, Shane Warne, etc. He was the only Indian commentator during the inaugural season of The Hundred. 

He subsequently commentated on the T20 Blast and later in the Test series between England and India. After the third Test, he had to leave England unfortunately to go and prepare for the upcoming second leg of the IPL 2021. This brought an end to his successful stint as a commentator for this season. Here are some of his best quotes: 

“He starts like a Corolla but finishes like a Ferrari” – On Virat Kohli

Karthik and Kohli have played a lot of cricket together. When Kohli was bursting on the scene, Karthik had essentially had four or five years of international cricket and had been close to Virat. Over the years, the duo has shared a good bond on and off the field. Their friendship was visible in an interview which was recently released by Sky Sports.

This quote was used by Karthik earlier this year when Kohli scored 77 runs in the third T20I match against England earlier this year in Ahmedabad. Karthik tweeted this for the national skipper, explaining how quickly Kohli can switch gears after being set on the crease. 

‘Exactly the opposite of you!’ DK rubs it on Nasser Hussain

Karthik was known to be someone who can start quickly and score at a good pace. In the commentary box as well, he had a terrific start. On his very first day in the box, for his first spell, DK was with Hussain commentating on the ICC World Test Championship final between India and New Zealand. 

The former England skipper had a few words of praise for Rohit Sharma. He said, “Rohit is a great puller of the short ball. Uses his feet well against spin. Shows positive intent.” Karthik who was just beside Hussain had an edgy reply for the ex-cricketer. “Yes, exactly the opposite of you, Nass!,” Karthik said while Hussain burst out laughing. 

“If you are a ball, you would rather be hit by a Kane Williamson’s bat and not a Virat Kohli’s bat – He just kisses the ball.”

There have been so many comparisons in the past of Kane Williamson and Virat Kohli. At the ICC WTC final in Southampton, the two were face to face and batting in difficult conditions. While Williamson had the last laugh scoring 49 and 52*, Kohli’s gritty 44 in the first innings also left a mark. 

Through the match, there was a clear difference noticed in the way the two modern greats approached batting. Kohli has a knack for going hard at the ball, trying to enforce his body weight, while meeting the ball under his eye. On the other hand, Williamson plays the ball quite late and uses soft hands to accommodate the swinging ball. DK had his own style of explaining this difference. 

“A city in New Zealand, that’s a family in India”

On the final day of the WTC Final, as the win was knocking on the doors of New Zealand, there were some Blackcaps fans in the crowd. Despite not having too much crowd through the first few days due to rain, the final day saw a bunch of New Zealand fans getting together in the stands and cheering for their side. 

This is when Michael Artherton called the fans ‘small gathering’ on air. Simon Doull, the former New Zealand fast-bowler, was also in the commentary box at this moment, said, “In New Zealand, that’s a city.” Listening to this, DK who was the third commentator at the time said, “A city in New Zealand, that’s a family in India.” The joke was on the population of New Zealand, which is one least densely populated places on the earth. To add some perspective, New Zealand’s population is about 50 lakhs, while Mumbai houses 1.25 crore people. 

“Mere mortals would find it hard to emulate an MS Dhoni”, on best wicket keepers

Many consider that Karthik would have played a whole lot of matches for India had he been born in some other generation and not in the same one as MS Dhoni. The Tamil Nadu players have always praised Dhoni for his achievements and the two share a good bond as well. 

While selectors had doubts regarding the keeping techniques of both DK and MSD in their initial years, both managed to prove everyone wrong. Speaking on the unconventional keeping style of Dhoni which has been so effective, Karthik noted that it is not easy to copy the style of the great man. 

JOE has been the ROOT cause of India’s troubles’

DK has a great sense of humor and some of the most hilarious exchanges in the commentary box during this summer in England have involved Karthik. However, this one time, he showed that his pun-game is also very strong. While talking about how the England captain Joe Root has managed to tackle the Indian bowling with utmost perfection and put them under pressure regularly, Karthik used his magic of words and said this. 

DK trolls another former England captain, this time Michael Atherton

One of the key highlights of DK’s ventures in England this summer was his fashion sense. The 36-year-old showed his superb collection of shirts and different styles of dress codes. Before his departure, during the third Test, Sky Sports showcased some of his best outfits during the summer while Atherton called him ‘the Giorgio Armani of broadcasting.’

While this was indeed a compliment, Karthik managed to poke some fun at his fellow commentator. He said, “Athers, we have also established that you speaking about fashion and a two-year-old speaking about astrophysics don’t go well together.” Both Atherton and Michael Holding were seen laughing as DK said this.