Former Indian chief selector MSK Prasad heaped praise on Dinesh Karthik, as he is gearing up to make an impact in the upcoming five-match T20I series against South Africa, starting on June 9.
Karthik's stunning performance in the IPL 2022 forced the Indian selection committee and the team management to bring him back into the Team India fold when not many would have expected him to make yet another comeback to the national team at the ripe old age of 37.
The veteran wicketkeeper-batter last played for India in the 2019 World Cup, but now he would be eager to make a strong comeback in the upcoming T20I series against South Africa. As the spotlight is firmly on Karthik, the former wicketkeeper said that he had never seen him in this frame of mind.
MSK Prasad told NDTV: “It is really impressive how he performed in certain situations. I have not really seen Dinesh Karthik in this state of mind in the last one and half-decade. He is in the best frame of mind so that's a reason.”
He added, “He made his selection inevitable. Now that he is here again, he will get his opportunities, he can make an impact. Not many players are there in that particular role (finisher's). Probably, the selectors would have felt to give him one last try, because of the form he has exhibited in the IPL 2022.”
The former chief selector also said that the India team management needs to find out its best batting order as soon as possible for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2022 to be held in Australia later this year.
Prasad signed off by saying, “We need to set our batting order. Even in the last T20 World Cup, we were found a little wanting in that front.”
(With NDTV Inputs)
