“They have great bench strength” – Dinesh Karthik credits India’s massive talent pool for series win over West Indies  

Wicket-keeper batter Dinesh Karthik heaped praise on Team India’s bench strength following their 3-0 win over West Indies.

The Men In Blue emerged as comprehensive winners despite the absence of players like Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammad Shami.

The hosts also churned out a win in the final T20I where the likes of Virat Kohli and Rishabh Pant were rested. Rohit Sharma used the bench strength by handing Avesh Khan his debut cap and giving Ruturaj Gaikwad an opportunity as well.

Claiming that the quality of the players in the reserves was the main factor in the series win, Karthik told the ICC:

“I think it is the quality of players. When you talk about good teams over a period of time, they always talk about the fact that bench strength needs to be very important, and India has great bench strength.”

Karthik added:

“If you take this series, they have rested Virat Kohli, they have rested Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah. But in spite of that, they have produced an astounding 3-0 series victory against West Indies, which is a very good T20 side.”

West Indies, who are ushering in a new era after their disappointing campaign in last year’s T20 World Cup, were expected to be competitive in the shortest format of the game. The Caribbean side, however, met the same fate as the ODI series, which also ended in a 3-0 margin.

“Who does not want to be World No.1?” – Dinesh Karthik

With the series win over West Indies, Team India claimed the No.1 spot in the ICC T20 rankings. The team are yet to record a loss since their tame defeat against New Zealand in the group stages of the 2021 WT20 World Cup.

Since then, India have recorded 9 consecutive wins in the format, with two series whitewashes to their name. The Men In Blue will next face Sri Lanka at home to continue their buildup to the 2022 T20 World Cup.

Speaking about India claiming the No.1 ranking, Karthik said:

“Who doesn’t want to be world No.1 even if it is for some period of time? Because other teams will play matches and then India plays more matches post the IPL so that could change. But for the moment, knowing that Team India is the No.1 T20 team in the world is I think a very, very good feeling.”

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India currently hold the No.1 spot by the barest of margins, with England and Pakistan looming close by in the second and third positions respectively.

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