“It’s nothing to worry about” – Dinesh Karthik on Virat Kohli’s failures in 3-match ODI series vs Sri Lanka

Dinesh Karthik believes Virat Kohli’s failure in the recently concluded ODI series against Sri Lanka was not a sign of concern. The former India wicketkeeper-batter said the pitch was tough to play against spinners. The reaction came as Kohli returned with scores of 24 (32), 14 (19) and 20 (18) in his three outings.

The right-handed batter was dismissed lbw on three occasions by three different spinners: Wanindu Hasaranga, Jeffrey Vandersay, and Dunith Wellalage. The performance was a shock since Kohli has 1086 runs in 31 ODIs (29 innings) in Sri Lanka, which includes five tons and two 50s.

Dinesh Karthik told Cricbuzz (via News 18):

“It’s been a tough pitch to play spin in this series, let’s admit that first. Be it Virat Kohli, be it Rohit Sharma, or be it anyone else. With the slightly semi-new ball between overs about 8 to 30, it’s been hard work. It’s nothing to worry about."

"Not too many pitches work that way, but it’s been a tough pitch to play spinners. I’m not going to defend Virat Kohli here, but I can tell you that playing spin was very hard,” he added.

Notably, India lost 27 wickets to spin in the three-match ODI series in Sri Lanka. The Men in Blue lost the series 0-2 after the opening game ended in a tie.

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Dinesh Karthik picks Rohit Sharma’s batting and Riyan Parag’s bowling as his ‘biggest positives’ from Sri Lanka ODIs

Dinesh Karthik has picked India captain Rohit Sharma’s batting and Riyan Parag’s bowling as his ‘biggest positives’ from the ODI series in Sri Lanka.

Notably, Rohit finished as the leading run-scorer in the ODI series, amassing 157 runs in his three innings with the help of two half-centuries. Meanwhile, Riyan Parag bagged three wickets on his 50-over debut. The Assam-born all-rounder had bagged three wickets in the T20I series as well.

Karthik told Cricbuzz (via News 18):

“The biggest positive is the fact that India played all-rounders and bravely attacked. So that is something I really like. No. 2 Riyan Parag, in his limited opportunities, is showing what he can do with the ball, which is again a small plus for us."

"Other than that, I think Rohit’s batting is itself. The way he starts in powerplay. He is making batting look too easy in the series. Batted beautifully. These were the positives for me from this series,” he added.

Team India will next play a two-match Test series against Bangladesh in September.