PBKS vs RCB: "Wasn’t mentally ready..." - Dinesh Karthik reveals being forced to bat after RCB's awful collapse vs GT

Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik shared his experience of unexpectedly becoming the savior for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) once again during their IPL 2024 clash against Gujarat Titans (GT) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday, May 4.

Despite initially not expecting the need to bat, Karthik played a crucial role in Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) 4-wicket win over the Gujarat Titans (GT) on Saturday. He played a quickfire knock of 21* runs off 12 balls laced with 4 fours to finish the game for RCB as the team recorded its third consecutive win, keeping their playoff hopes alive in the ongoing IPL 2024.

After the match, RCB wicketkeeper Karthik revealed that he was casually enjoying a cup of cappuccino and was not mentally prepared to bat against the GT at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. However, as wickets began to fall, he had to forcefully get ready to take the crease for the RCB.

I wasn’t padded up, I wasn’t mentally ready: Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik was quoted as saying by Star Sports at the post-match presser: “The day started with a cup of tea, then after four overs I had a cappuccino and thought I wouldn’t be batting. I wasn’t padded up, I wasn’t mentally ready, I was just chilling. And then things happened and I had to pad up. I was a touch late but I just managed to make it.”

Karthik also opened up about the unique pressure associated with chasing low totals while losing wickets in quick succession. He stressed the importance of being able to score boundaries without taking unnecessary risks, especially in such situations. Karthik mentioned that composure and calculated aggression can help one navigate through such challenging situations.

Notably, after a promising start where RCB reached 92 for 1 within the initial 6 overs, their momentum quickly shifted as they suffered a batting collapse, losing 6 wickets in just 25 runs to find themselves in a precarious position of 117/6 before Karthik came to rescue them.

It’s a very different sort of pressure: Dinesh Karthik

The 38-year-old keeper added, “It’s a very different sort of pressure, it’s one thing chasing down totals in an interesting way and all you need to think about is hitting boundaries. But if there’s a lot of time and you need to make sure that playing sensibly is also the need of the hour, then your basic cricketing skills come through, how you are able to hit boundaries without taking risks. Over a period of time, that’s been my strengths, so I backed myself to that.”

In the end, Karthik opened up about the pitch conditions, saying the track was initially favoring the bowlers, but later, due to being covered for an extended period, moisture made it sticky and challenging to bat on in the game.

He reckoned that winning the toss really helped the RCB. He also praised the RCB bowlers for their strong performance against the Gujarat team. Notably, RCB will next Punjab Kings (PBKS) on May 9 at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala.