Hyderabad: Team India's wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik, who made his debut way back in 2004 as a 19-year-old, might be staring down the barrel with regards to his international career, after he failed to deliver in the two opportunities that he was given at the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019.
Karthik, who is the senior-most player in the Indian team, has been in and out of the squad and chipped in across formats, though not consistently. He also failed to capitalise on the opportunities he got in the recently concluded World Cup in England.
Numbers don't lie:
- The 34-year-old played three World Cup matches, made eight runs against Bangladesh and managed six in the semi-final against New Zealand, and did not get to bat against Sri Lanka.
- Overall, in nearly 15 years, Karthik has played in only 94 ODIs in which he scored 1,752 runs at an average of just around 30 and with nine fifties.
Heart of the matter:
Interestingly, Karthik was not picked for India’s tour of West Indies, starting August 3, when the senior selection committee met to pick the team on Sunday (July 21).
His exclusion from ODI and Test squads might make sense but Karthik was not even considered for T20I format, in which the Tamil Nadu batsman has proved his mettle time and again.
- In 26 T20I innings, Karthik has scored 399 runs at an average of 33.25 and with a strike rate of 143.52. Also, not to forget Nidahas trophy final in 2018 where Karthik smashed 29 not out off 8 balls, including a last ball six against Bangladesh to help India win the trophy.
- Hence, given his pretty good stats in the shortest format of the game, Karthik atleast deserved a chance in the upcoming T20I series against West Indies.
- However, ignoring Karthik completely might hint that MSK Prasad led selectors committee have decided to look beyond him and he is no more part of their plans.
Infact, MSK has made it clear that the management wants to groom young wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant, who has been included in all the three squads for the upcoming tour to the West Indies, therefore Karthik won't be even considered as India's first-choice wicket-keeper.
Also, another core set of 20 players are set to be identified so that they can feature in both 50 and 20-over tournaments during the next year or so and players like Karthik, who don't have age on their side and are way past their prime, are unlikely to feature in the larger scheme of things.
Given all the facts, stats, situations and mindset of the Team India selectors, it won't be wrong to conclude that it's the end of the road for Krishnakumar Dinesh Karthik.
