Dinesh Karthik continued his superlative show as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) thrashed rampant Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Tuesday at the Wankhede Stadium. Karthik produced a blazing knock as RCB handed Sanju Samson and Co their first defeat of IPL 2022.
Chasing 170 runs set by the RR, Bangalore were reduced to 87/5 with all big hitters back in the hut. In walked Dinesh Karthik, who took the attack to the opposition. He along with Shahbaz Ahmed forged a quickfire 67-run partnership to set the victory.
Karthik eventually remained unbeaten on 44 runs off 23 balls to see RCB through with five balls to spare. The 35-year-old wicket-keeper batsman has been on a run-scoring spree and is enjoying the finisher’s role.
He has batted thrice in the tournament so far, scoring 90 off 44 balls and has remained unbeaten on all three occasions. In his last two innings, Dinesh Karthik’s blazing strokeplay powered Bangalore franchise to victories.
Meanwhile, the fans were excited to see the beast mode of Dinesh Karthik. Besides calling him the best finisher in the country right now, many voiced for his inclusion in the T20 World Cup squad.
Here are some reactions:
The commentator DK can walk the talk 😉 Well played @DineshKarthik #RRvRCB #IPL2022 pic.twitter.com/s4Nq0IH2UV
— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) April 5, 2022
Faf du Plessis on Dinesh Karthik:
"DK is playing his best cricket. I think he needs to put his name back into international cricket, doesn't he?"#RCBvsRR
— Prasenjiit Dey (@CricPrasen) April 5, 2022
On this Dinesh Karthik chase, let us bring back this Rohit Sharma comment 🫶🏻💙 pic.twitter.com/4NBfCQM64o
— Shrutika Gaekwad (@Shrustappen33) April 5, 2022
Dinesh Karthik is a high class finisher, incredible.
— Johns. (@CricCrazyJohns) April 5, 2022
RCB are going to have to start calling Dinesh Karthik "The Postman"
Because he always delivers!#IPL2022 #RCBvRR
— Jack Hope (@thecricketpod) (@JackHope0) April 5, 2022
This was a special innings from the uncapped Shahbaz Ahmed. And Dinesh Karthik continues to live up to his finishers role for RCB.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) April 5, 2022
36 year old Dinesh Karthik finishing matches pic.twitter.com/TeNNEfSD4f
— Sagar (@sagarcasm) April 5, 2022
Dinesh Karthik. That's it, that's the tweet. ❤️ pic.twitter.com/rnq3REdz5E
— Akshat (@AkshatOM10) April 5, 2022
https://twitter.com/smileandraja/status/1511407320173101060?s=20&t=xArwhO5tSfa–_ahUADh2w
Dinesh Karthik will hope to continue the momentum to give himself the best chance of making it to the T20 World Cup, slated to take place later this year in Australia.
“I’m not done yet” – Dinesh Karthik after match-winning knock vs RR
Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, the 35-year-old highlighted that he made a conscious effort to remind himself about his abilities. He also said that he still has plenty to offer.
“I made a conscious effort this year to do justice to myself because I felt last year I could have done better. The way I trained was better – hats off to the person I trained with. He put me through some things which was very important for me in life as well.”
He added:
“I was making a conscious effort to tell myself that I’m not done yet, I have a goal and I want to achieve something and I tried my best. I’ve done my preparation.”
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