Wouldn’t be here without Abhishek Nayar: Dinesh Karthik

Dinesh Karthik has been a prolific run-scorer for Tamil Nadu at the domestic level. He is also an acrobatic wicket-keeper which adds to his repertoire. However, due to inconsistent performances, he hasn’t quite been able to hold on to his spot in the Indian team. Also, with MS Dhoni as the wicketkeeper, The Tamil Nadu cricketer gets opportunities to play as a specialist batsman in the Indian lineup, where there is cut-throat competition.

Most recently, he made a comeback for Team India during India’s One-Day International series against New Zealand. He impressed with a couple of handy knocks, which included a match-winning score of 64 runs at Pune. In a recent interview with the Press Trust of India, Karthik credited Abhishek Nayar for his comeback.

“I would not be where I am without Abhishek Nayar. Working with him is an ongoing process. We discuss a lot about the game, mostly on the phone since we are both busy playing. Before the New Zealand series, he advised me to show intent from ball one, be very aggressive.” Karthik said.

The wicketkeeper-batsman also spoke about his approach towards playing for the national team. “Maybe it is (the last chance) but I have not looked at it that way. If you start thinking on those lines (future), you put extra pressure on yourself. I am satisfied with the way I batted in the ODI series against New Zealand and will aim to do the same whenever I get the next opportunity,” the Tamil Nadu cricketer added.

Praises from Karthik for Kohli as a leader

Over the years, Karthik has played under several Indian skippers- Virat Kohli is one of them. He praised the current Indian skipper’s fitness standards and mentioned that it has rubbed off well on the rest of the team. Karthik is 32 years old and with the emergence of youngsters like Rishabh Pant, the road ahead won’t be a cakewalk for him.