“Karthik is a fine finisher, but…”K Srikkanth on ‘actual finishers’
Krishnamachari Srikkanth lauded Karthik’s recent performances. But he questioned the tag of finisher associated with Karthik
Dinesh Karthik’s new role as finisher delighted the Indian team management. This 37-year-old batter is featured prominently in India’s T20 squad. He is selected for the Asia Cup Tournament. However, his indifferent form in recent matches means he will be closely watched in the days ahead.
Former Indian cricket team captain and selector Krishnamachari Srikkanth lauded Karthik’s recent performances. But he questioned the tag of a finisher associated with Karthik.
“What do you mean by a finisher? The finisher is the guy who can take the batting from the 8th or 12th over. He can go on till the 20th over. A finisher can win the match for India. He starts from the 8th or the 6th over. But where is the good finisher? KL Rahul is a good finisher, and Rohit Sharma is a good finisher. They go opening by the way,” Srikkanth said on Star Sports.
‘Pant is a brilliant finisher’
“I can’t say that you bat the last 5 overs and say he’s a finisher. I want to term Dinesh Karthik as a finisher. He definitely finds a place in my team too. I would call Dinesh Karthik a fine finisher. But actual finishers are guys like Suryakumar Yadav. He is a brilliant finisher. You have Rishabh Pant, who is a brilliant finisher. You have Hardik Pandya, who is a brilliant finisher. A finisher is a guy who takes the team from the 8th over and goes on till the 20th over,” Srikkanth added.
The spotlight will be on Karthik in the Asia Cup as India would choose the second wicket-keeper between Karthik, Ishan Kishan and Sanju Samson for the World Cup.
India’s squad for Asia Cup: Rohit Sharma (Captain), KL Rahul (vice-captain), Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Deepak Hooda, Rishabh Pant (wicket-keeper), Dinesh Karthik (wicket-keeper), Hardik Pandya, Ravindra Jadeja, R. Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravi Bishnoi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Arshdeep Singh, Avesh Khan.