Dinesh Karthik hopeful for comeback to Indian team

What’s the story?

Indian wicket-keeper batsman Dinesh Karthik who has been in superb form off late opened up about his possible return to the Indian cricket team. In an interview with IANS, he said he is targeting a batsman’s slot on the Indian side.

Extra Cover: Ton-up Dinesh Karthik opens up on his Champions Trophy chances

"This season has gone well for me and for the team (Tamil Nadu). We will look to continue the good form in the Deodhar Trophy as well," Karthik told IANS in a telephonic interview.

"I see myself competing for a batsman's slot. I keep scoring runs and at the moment the team has six-seven places for batsmen. So I think I can contribute in the team in that way. I have been playing well for the last few seasons and my runs speak for themselves. I feel my batting skills are good enough to pick me solely as batsman," he continued.

The context

The Indian discard has been performing extremely well in the various domestic tournaments over the past few year or so. His fine run of form began in the Ranji Trophy where he scored 704 runs in 10 matches at an average of 54.15.

He carried on that form into the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well where he scored 607 runs in 9 matches at a phenomenal average of 86.71. He also was named the man of the match in the final of the tournament where he scored a match-winning knock of 112 in 120 deliveries. He averaged 52.15 in the Duleep Trophy as well where he scored 211 runs in three matches.

The Details:

Karthik last played an ODI for India in 2014 against Afghanistan in the Asia Cup where he scored 21 in a winning cause. He made his ODI and Test debut way back in 2004 but was soon replaced by MS Dhoni as the wicket keeper batsman.

He did continue to play a role as a batsman in the side over the past few years and has performed quite decently. In 71 ODIs he has scored 1313 runs at an average of 27.93 with 7 half-centuries to his name.

What’s next?

Karthik will lead Tamil Nadu in the Deodhar Trophy against Harbhajan Singh’s India A and Parthiv Patel’s India B.

Author’s Take

Despite being extremely consistent at the domestic level and producing a lot of match winnings knocks for his side in the various tournaments he has played in, Karthik will have to wait his turn before making a comeback to the Indian side.

With the ICC Champions Trophy coming up in June, we can most probably predict what India’s squad would be. However, with a series against West Indies and Sri Lanka coming up after the tournament in England, Karthik might be given a chance if he continues his good run of form.