Champions Trophy 2017: Dinesh Karthik desperately needs to grab limited chances to resurrect India career

The minute BCCI announced the selection of Dinesh Karthik in place of an injured Manish Pandey for 2017 Champions Trophy, a joke started circulating on social media. Is Karthik a Champions Trophy specialist? In 2013, the Tamil Nadu batsman earned a recall to the Indian squad after a stellar domestic season and equally impressive Indian Premier League (IPL) season with Mumbai Indians. He couldn’t quite capitalise on that opportunity.

Four years later, he has once again travelled with the Indian team to England, on the back of good performances in the domestic circuit and the IPL, and indeed as a replacement for the injured Pandey. He now has a chance again to resurrect his international career.

Life has not been all merry for the 32-year old. The last time Karthik played for India, he missed crucial opportunities behind the stumps and hardly contributed anything in front of it. He was subsequently dropped from the team. This was in 2014. His last appearance in the Test format was in 2010 and his previous outing for India in the shortest format came seven years ago. His international career was seen to be heading nowhere.

Karthik for the past decade or so has been in the shadow of regular wicket keeper and former captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni. That Karthik debuted before Dhoni and still failed to cement his place in the Indian team indicates how inconsistent he has been. Perhaps sensing that Dhoni is not going anywhere soon and Wriddhiman Saha having grasped the wicket keeper’s slot in the Test side, the Tamil Nadu batsman invested all his energy on batting and tried to break into the Indian team as a specialist batsman. Though he donned the gloves for his state team, his primary focus was to knock the selector’s door with his willow.

During India’s Test series against England in 2016, there was a place for the taking after Saha got injured. But as it turned out, Karthik himself was injured and featured for Tamil Nadu in Ranji Trophy only as a specialist batsman. Naturally, Gujarat captain Parthiv Patel beat him in the race and made a comeback in the longest format of the game after eight years.

Despite these setbacks, Karthik didn’t get demoralised. He did what he had been doing successfully for years in domestic cricket: score so many runs that one simply can’t ignore you.

In the 10 matches that he played in the Ranji Trophy this season, the 32-year old amassed 704 runs at a healthy average of 54.15. He bettered his performance in the Vijay Hazare Trophy, a tournament Tamil Nadu eventually won. He was the highest run-getter with 607 runs and when the chips were down in the final against Bengal, he smashed a century to provide his bowlers a respectable total to defend. He wasn’t done yet though.

In the Deodhar Trophy, a tourney that featured the likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Manish Pandey, Ambati Rayudu, Manoj Tiwary, Karthik topped the run charts and took his side to the final against India B. In the summit clash, the senior batsman once again slammed a century to help his side clinch the title.

Then came the final step for all domestic players: the IPL. And he didn’t fail to ask the selectors questions. Gujarat Lions endured a miserable season, but Karthik found himself among the runs. He had done his job and now it was upon the selectors to notice and reward it.

There were others waiting in the line for a spot in the Indian squad. On one hand was a young, sensational Rishabh Pant and on the other was the experienced Suresh Raina. Pant had taken the world by storm in the IPL with his scintillating innings against Gujarat Lions. That knock garnered praise from even the great Sachin Tendulkar. The 19-year old had also earlier smashed a triple century in the Ranji Trophy to add to his credentials. However, Pant, despite his form, did not have the exposure to warrant a selection for a major ICC tournament. Raina, on the other hand, had the exposure which was required, but his non-participation in the domestic circuit proved to be his undoing. Karthik had both – form and the experience.

When he strolled out to bat in the warm-up match against New Zealand, he looked as patchy (or Karthik) as it could get. It never felt like he belonged and before you could figure out what was wrong, he played a false shot and got dismissed for a duck. But against Bangladesh, when India were in a spot of bother, having lost Rohit Sharma and Ajinkya Rahane early, Karthik flourished. Barring a tough dropped chance that he offered, he mixed caution with aggression to score 94 runs before being asked to retire.

“In the last game I was a little nervous going in. Even though Virat (Kohli) tried his best to calm my nerves, it was a little difficult. I was back in the Blues after a long time, so I guess I was very overexcited probably,” said Karthik after India registered a 240-run victory over Bangladesh.

Teams usually start constructing a squad two years before an ICC tournament. That Karthik has found himself in the team despite not being a part of those preparations is because of his hard work, perseverance, determination and a tinge of luck.

He may or may not feature in the starting eleven at the Champions Trophy. But if he does, Karthik must cash in on it and keep all the inconsistencies and nervousness aside and hopefully kill the joke that made the rounds after his selection.