Veteran India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has said that his fire of still playing for the Indian team still burns bright and is eyeing the finisher’s role for the national team keeping in mind the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022.
Karthik had made his India debut in 2004 as a 19-year-old and since then has played 26 Tests, 94 ODIs, and 32 T20Is for India. His last appearance in India colors came in the 2019 World Cup.
"It is about playing the sport, I genuinely harbor the ambition of playing for the country again and I want to do everything possible that is my ultimate goal. I train and practice, everything I do right now is working towards that goal. The next three years for me is about playing the sport and doing everything I can. I enjoy playing the sport," Karthik told ANI.
"That is why I go and play Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Vijay Hazare for Tamil Nadu. The kind of success we have had as a state team has been phenomenal and me being a part of that journey is something I have thoroughly enjoyed. My main aim is to play for the country again, especially the T20 format. T20 is something, the fire is still burning very brightly," he added.
Talking about his ambition of playing for India in T20Is, Karthik said: "Even the last T20 World Cup, one of the main areas is a finisher and that is a role I am looking at very keenly. Over the period of time, the stats and performances show that I have done a decent job in the limited time I have spent in Indian colors and the franchises I have played for."
Dinesh Karthik will be eyeing for a new franchise in the upcoming IPL 2022 mega auction after he was not retained by the Kolkata Knight Riders, whom he captained for one and a half seasons.
(ANI inputs)
