RR vs RCB: Dinesh Karthik Has A Clear And Defined Role At RCB; IN KKR We Saw A Frantic DK - Carlos Brathwaite

Former West Indies T20I skipper Carlos Brathwaite said Dinesh Karthik has a clear mindset while playing for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2022.

On Tuesday, RCB handed Rajasthan Royals their first defeat of this season after a nail-biting finish by Karthik and Shahbaz Ahmed to propel their side to a four-wicket win at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.

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RR vs RCB: Dinesh Karthik, Shahbaz Ahmed takes RCB past the finishing line

RCB’s chase faltered in the middle despite a steady opening stand of 55 runs between Faf du Plessis (29) and Anuj Rawat (26) over seven overs. The openers negated the new ball threat from Prasidh Krishna and Trent Boult. As the duo moved swiftly towards their target of 170, former RCB bowler Yuzvendra Chahal got the breakthrough for Rajasthan.

Chahal got the better of the RCB skipper, who miscued a shot down towards long-on and Boult took a comfortable catch to end the stand. In the space of 5.3 overs, RCB slipped from  55 for 1 to 87 for 5 and that is when Karthik joined forces with Shahbaz Ahmed in the 13th over.

The former KKR skipper took no time to settle at the crease as his fellow Tamil Nadu teammate Ravichandran Ashwin bore the brunt of conceding 21 runs in an over, 19 were scored by the RCB gloveman. Karthik smashed Navdeep Saini for successive boundaries before Shahbaz switched his gears and tonked a flurry of boundaries and sixes against the likes of Saini, Boult and Prasidh.

Shahbaz was cleaned up by Boult while he attempted to play the scoop but the job was already done as RCB required 15 runs in the last two overs. Karthik hit Prasidh for two fours in a row to give the finishing touches to RCB with his breathtaking 23-ball 44, including seven fours and a six.

Dinesh Karthik has a clear mind and just doesn’t look cluttered: Carlos Brathwaite

Brathwaite, who played for KKR under Karthik’s leadership in 2019, said the Indian wicketkeeper-batter is relieved from the captaincy role and observes clarity in his role at RCB.

“Dinesh Karthik has a clear mind and just doesn’t look cluttered. I think with KKR, there was a lot on his mind, whether it be captaincy or leading big players and wanting to be in and around. In RCB, he has the weight of captaincy off his shoulders,” Brathwaite told ESPNCricinfo.

“He has a clear and defined role. In KKR, we saw a frantic DK who was almost hunting a score. Now he is just enjoying playing cricket shots and you can see that from the results,” he added. 

Karthik was awarded as the player of the match for his crackling knock that helped RCB earn two points and move up to the sixth spot in the points table of IPL 2022.

Also Read: RR vs RCB: I Was Telling Myself I’m Not Done Yet – Dinesh Karthik On Cricketing Career