Happy birthday, Dinesh Karthik: DK version 2.0 looks promising and entertaining!

Dinesh Karthik debuted for India on September 5, 2004 in an ODI against England at Lord’s. In two months’ time, he was playing the game’s longest format. But since then, he has never been a regular in the Indian side as he has had a stop-start international career. There was never a doubt over his talent and athleticism, but consistency always eluded him. Presence of a giant like MS Dhoni didn’t help either.

The wicket-keeper batsman always got a chance when MSD was not playing. He scored heaps of runs in the domestic circuit and was the first choice whenever Dhoni didn’t feature in the side. But Karthik failed to translate those performances on the international stage, and couldn’t rise up to the occasion and impress in whatever limited opportunities he got.

But his heroics in the Nidahas Trophy final against Bangladesh has shown a different Karthik to the world — someone who doesn’t crumble under pressure and instead soaks it all and delivers ever-so coolly, almost every time. His 8-ball 29* which also included a six off the last ball helped India beat Bangladesh in a thrilling encounter.

Karthik turns 33 on June 1 and it would be safe to say that year 2018 has witnessed DK: version 2.0. And his second innings looks very promising. After the Nidahas Trophy final, many said the Indian team has got a new finisher. In the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, he led Kolkata Knight Riders to a third place finish. He displayed superb leadership qualities apart from his new-found consistency in batting. He finished at the ninth spot in the list of batsmen with most runs. In 16 matches, he amassed 498 runs at an average of 49.80 and a strike rate of 147.77. DK not only led his side brilliantly but also played the role of a finisher perfectly.

As India start their international cricketing calendar soon, Karthik would be in the fray after impressive performances in recent times. With India’s Test wicket-keeper Wriddhiman Saha all set to miss the Afghanistan Test due to a thumb injury, DK would be in contention to make a Test comeback too.

In short, 2018 has been wonderful for him and DK: version 2.0 is here to impress! Happy birthday, Karthik!