Dinesh Karthik reveals the bowler who haunted him, calls Pakistan 'favorite team' but there's a twist
Published - 26 Jul 2024, 09:44 PM | Updated - 23 Aug 2024, 01:16 AM
Dinesh Karthik, the former Indian wicketkeeper-batsman, is currently in England. He is currently commentating on the England vs West Indies Test series that is on at the moment at Edgbaston.
England have already won the series heading into the third Test match. Meanwhile, Dinesh Karthik is best known for his match-winning knock in the Nidahas Trophy against Bangladesh with India needing six to win off the final ball.
Karthik hit the winning runs for India. It was that match that gave his international career a new life. He was a part of India's 2019 ODI World Cup squad and also India's T20 World Cup 2022 squad. He retired from cricket after the 2024 season of IPL.
Now he is a full-time commentator and does gigs with Cricbuzz as well. Currently, he is commentating for Sky Sports in England for the ongoing series against West Indies.
In an interaction on Reddit, DK answered a few questions that were asked to him by his fans. A fan asked what was his funniest moment in the Indian dressing room over his long career.
Interestingly, he picked the funniest moment involving former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly.
"One of the funniest moments I was involved was when In Cape Town when Sourav Ganguly had to go back, he was padded up waiting for a long time and wickets did not fall, he had gone to the toilet and eventually had to walk out to bat and all that happened in a hurry. In fact play waited for a bit before he could come," said Karthik.
Karthik picked Pakistan as the favorite team he had played against. He scored 261 runs in six Test matches against Pakistan. He played four ODI matches against Pakistan with a best of 31* and three T20I matches with a best of 11.
"Favourite team I played against I must say it is Pakistan because there was so much fan following and the rivalry is always so high so it is always a lot of fun playing Pakistan," said DK.
He further said that Lasith Malinga was the toughest bowler he faced in international cricket and he termed him as a nightmare.
"The bowler that I found the hardest, Lasith Malinga, I really found it hard to pick him, he was a nightmare."
Karthik played 26 Test matches, 94 ODI matches, and 60 T20I matches for Team India. He played his best for India in the T20I format and that too in the final leg of his career. Since MS Dhoni's retirement from international cricket and with the rise of Rishabh Pant, it was Karthik who filled the void and played the role of a finisher. He played some impactful knocks in that role and notched up his only T20I fifty in the format against South Africa in 2022.
Also Read: Not KKR and India! Dinesh Karthik names his favorite IPL team and country
