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Dinesh Karthik ( Image Credit: Twitter)
Despite making his international debut in 2004, Dinesh Karthik was never a regular in the Indian team. Besides, he last played for the Asian side during the ICC ODI World Cup in 2019. However, he has regularly been playing in the domestic arena.
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He has also been playing in the Indian T20 league, and was with the Kolkata Knight Riders for five seasons. Although he was seen doing commentary during the English summer in 2021, Karthik has said that he is still not thinking of retirement. He was hopeful of returning to the T20I set-up as a finisher.
It is to be noted that the 36-year-old scored a 103-ball 116 in the Vijay Hazare Trophy final in December last year. Thus, he was confident of making it to the Indian team once again. He said that it was his "ultimate goal".
My main aim is to play for the country again: Dinesh Karthik
"I genuinely harbour 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," said Dinesh Karthik, as quoted by India Today.
"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.
Karthik then mentioned that he is keen on performing the role of a finisher. He also felt that he did a fairly decent job in the limited opportunities he got in international cricket. He even cited the ICC T20 WC 2021 as an example to explain the role of a finisher being one of the main areas.
"Even in 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 colours and the franchises I have played for," he added.