Dinesh Karthik puts up batting masterclass in Mumbai after early finish in Delhi Test

India-Australia second Test ended inside three days and most were figuring out plans for the remaining two days, which were supposed to be match days of the Border Gavaskar Trophy. On commentary duties, Dinesh Karthik was in proactive mode to make the remaining two days count in the national capital and tweeted, “Ang suggestions what should I do the remaining two days in Delhi… (sic)”.

Indian players went back home to spend time with their families, so did some Indian commentators and visiting Australian team chose to go sightseeing. David Warner, Marnus Labuschagne posted pics of their visits to famous monuments in the city.

For Karthik, however, it wasn’t a history lesson and he took the flight to Mumbai where he exhibited a T20 masterclass with the bat in the ongoing DY Patil T20 Tournament. In the Super League fixture against RBI at the DY Patil Cricket Stadium, the right-hander smashed an unbeaten 38-ball 75, laced with five boundaries and six sixes. The RBI bowling line-up featured the likes of Ankit Rajpoot and Shahbaz Nadeem but Karthik was in a destructive mood as he sent fielders on the leather hunt.

Turning up for DY Patil Group B team, the wicketkeeper-batsman ensured the side maintains their all-win record in the league stage and enter the knockout stage in an emphatic fashion. The decision to field first was a sensible one from RBI as most teams have enjoyed chasing in the tournament so far but DK clearly came out of syllabus for the Nadeem-led unit.

Karthik walked into bat when the scoreboard read 66/3 after eight overs. The 37-year-old took some time early on and then exploded towards the business end of the innings — typical DK things in the format. He was severe in the 19th over of the innings which saw him deposit seamer Kuldeep Hooda into stands, three times on the trot.

In reply, the RBI unit fell short of the 187-run target set by the DY Patil Group B team and could only manage 161/7 in 20 overs.

Tomorrow is a rest day in the tournament and the quarter-finals begin on 23 February. With the third Test in Indore still more than a week away, Karthik is likely to feature in the knockout fixtures for the side.

The tournament is being streamed on Jio Cinema and the highlights of DK’s knock are available on the platform

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