Dinesh Karthik confident of making his way back into the Indian T20 set-up for the World Cup

One of the biggest collateral damages from Team India’s mind-numbing semi-final loss in the 2019 World Cup against New Zealand was Dinesh Karthik. The Tamil Nadu captain was discarded from both the ODI and T20I set-up with the selectors and the team-management looking to invest in the likes of Rishabh Pant and the next generation of wicketkeeper-batsman.

But it was his exclusion in the shortest format of the game that has kept fans, as well as pundits, puzzled. In times where Team India is grappling with their outdated approach to T20 cricket and the underperformance of the likes of Pant, Karthik could be a solution to India’s woes. The wicketkeeper-batsman averages 57.00 and strikes at 160.56 in 18 T20Is since the start of 2018.

But, Karthik is not losing sleep over his exclusion. The Tamil Nadu captain was in stonewalling form during the recently concluded Vijay Hazare Trophy where he racked 418 runs at an average of 59.7

“We have a T20 World Cup coming up and I am definitely keen on contributing for the team in the finisher’s role. I feel confident playing that role and can also contribute when it comes to setting a good total batting in the middle-order,” Dinesh Karthik told TOI.

‘We are not one of the favorites in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy’ – Dinesh Karthik

Karthik’s current focus is to lead a star-studded Tamil Nadu side that consists of players like Murali Vijay, Ravichandran Ashwin in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Karthik believes “As a senior member of the stateside, it is my responsibility to be able to contribute each time I step on the field,” Karthik added.

Tamil Nadu’s fortunes in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy have been much like the national team. Since winning the inaugural edition in 2006-07, they haven’t managed to perform to their potential and are still to reach the finals since their maiden heist, and Karthik acknowledges that to the hilt.

“We have some good T20 players in our TN line-up. But we haven’t performed to our potential in this format,” said Karthik.

Tamil Nadu will lock horns with Kerala in their tournament opener in Thiruvananthapuram