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Veteran keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has reserved high praise for young opener Sai Sudharsan following the southpaw's impressive 55-run knock on ODI debut against South Africa on Sunday, December 17.
Sudharsan notched up a stunning half-century, helping the Men in Blue chase down a modest 117-run target to go 1-0 up in the three-match series. Karthik, who has shared the dressing room with the youngster for Tamil Nadu, also spoke about his work ethic.
The cricketer-commentator disclosed that Sudharsan's routine includes yoga and suryanamaskar. During a discussion on Cricbuzz, Karthik said:
"He is a very sorted kid. He was there with me in the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy. He got a hundred in the first game against Goa on a tough pitch and batter beautifully. The skills are there to see. But for me, what stands out from that boy, is how hard he works. He has such a tough routine; it is not even funny. He wakes up in the morning and does yoga, comes to the ground, does a warmup, and then again does suryanamaskar, and then goes out to bat.
"In between that, if he you have decided to field first, you should see the amount of effort he puts in in just the warmups. He is a boy who needs ounces of energy because he has so much effort to give in for every game, and that literally shines through in his career so far."
While India lost Ruturaj Gaikwad early in the run chase, Sai Sudharsan and Shreyas Iyer's 88-run stand for the second wicket sealed the game for the visitors.
"He has had a tough few months" - Dinesh Karthik on Arsheep Singh
Team India's left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh ran riot in the ODI series opener against South Africa, bagging a brilliant five-wicket haul.
Dinesh Karthik suggested that Arshdeep needed a performance like this to get back on track following a string of underwhelming outings in international cricket.
Giving his take on the pacer's bowling, he said:
"He has had a tough few months. In T20 cricket, his returns have not been great, and he has been found wanting in terms of consistency. What he has done well when he has bowled well is, at the back end, he is very good with his yorkers and has developed a good slower ball.
"With the new ball, what was very good about him was he can swing the ball both ways. He brings the ball back into the right-handers naturally, and then develop the one that goes away. It is a much slower ball, but still a very effective ball because that puts the doubt in the right-hander's mind."
The second ODI between India and South Africa will be played at St George's Park in Gqeberha on Tuesday, December 19.
