IPL 2022: I’m making a conscious effort to tell myself that I’m not done yet – Dinesh Karthik

Royal Challengers Bangalore wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik might be 36 years old but he feels there is still some fuel left in his tank.

Karthik stated he is making a conscious effort to tell himself that he is not done yet after guiding Royal Challengers Bangalore to a humdinger win of four wickets against Rajasthan Royals in the 13th match of IPL 2022 at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on Tuesday.

Karthik joined forces with Shahbaz Ahmed when RCB was struggling at 87-5 after 12.3 overs while chasing 170. The required rate was over 12 runs/over at that stage and Karthik had to hit the ground running. The veteran batter took the attack against Ravichandran Ashwin in the 14th over and got 21 runs off the over. It was the turning point of the game as it shifted the momentum in RCB’s favor.

Karthik feels he did the right training in the build-up to the season and he is reaping rewards for the same. The experienced batter went on to score an unbeaten knock of 44 runs off just 23 balls as he scored seven fours and one six to get his team over the line. Furthermore, Shahbaz Ahmed also played a crucial part in the team’s win as he smashed 45 runs off just 26 balls.

The duo added 67 runs off just 32 balls for the sixth wicket alliance and turned the match on its head in the last seven overs.

Dinesh Karthik said in the post-match presentation, “I think I made a conscious effort this year to do justice to myself because the last year, I felt I could have done better. The way I trained was much better this time around. Credit to the person who trained with me. I’m making a conscious effort to tell myself that I’m not done yet. When I went in, we needed 12 rpo and had to keep going. I train for these situations. To stay calm and know whom you can take down. I’ve tried to play as much white-ball cricket as possible, and prepare as many scenarios as possible. Lot of people have spent time with me in this journey, leading upto the tournament and it’s the work that goes unnoticed mostly. I think T20 cricket, it’s mostly premeditating but you also need to be clear about where to target.”

On the other hand, Harshal Patel also played a key role in the team’s win. Patel returned with impressive figures of 1-18 in his four overs and also scored the match-winning runs as he smashed Yashasvi Jaiswal for a six on the first ball off the 20th over.

Patel said after the game, “Very good. Like I always say, winning the game for the team and crossing the line is the reason why I play the game and this was one of those occasions. I had my plans when we came into the game to bowl the hard length and not a lot of slower balls as it is a very good wicket here but it turned out to be completely different, it is all about assessing and adapting to the conditions. At the top of my mark, I am pretty sure what I want to bowl and my field placements is where I want the batter to hit me. There are certain things you can do and certain things you can’t do (when the batter moves around and premeditates).”

The Faf du Plessis-led team will next face Mumbai Indians at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Pune on Saturday.