Following yesterday’s close loss against South Africa, former Indian opener Virender Sehwag has issued a bold statement regarding the Rishabh Pant-DK conundrum.
Though 37-year-old Dinesh Karthik had earned his spot in 2022 T20 WC 11 on the back of an unbelievable IPL and some game-winning cameos for India, he has failed to turn up on the big stage.
In the two innings he has played thus far in the 2022 T20 WC, Karthik has made scores of 1 off 2, and 6 off 15.
Rishabh Pant over Karthik, feels Virender Sehwag
Talking about the Pant-DK debate in a post-match show for Cricbuzz, Sehwag pointed out how Dinesh Karthik has never played on pitches Down Under while Rishabh Pant has achieved success in Aussie conditions.
“Pant should have played ahead of Karthik from Day One. He (Rishabh) has performed in Test and ODI cricket in Australia. When did Dinesh Karthik play in AUS? This is no Bangalore (Chinnaswamy) wicket.”
For the unaware, Karthik achieved huge success in the 2022 IPL at the Bangalore pitch but Australian pitches have nothing in common. There’s extra bounce on offer and the boundaries are 10-15 metres bigger than at Bangalore.
Giving no break to the Indian management to the Rahul-Rohit management, Virender Sehwag also added that Rishabh Pant should have played ahead of Hooda in the clash versus SA. He also pointed out Pant’s Gabba galore to lend logic to his preference.
“I can only give suggestions. In the end, the management makes the decisions. If Karthik is fit in next game, they’ll go with him. But according to me, Rishabh should have been in starting 11 from the beginning”.
Karthik had pulled up his leg muscles and was replaced by Pant for the last few overs of India’s fielding against South Africa on October 30.
It appears unlikely that the management will be fazed from the shots fired by Virender Sehwag. Pant, in all likelihood, won’t make the cut for India XI unless there’s a fitness issue with Karthik or someone else.