IPL 2022: 3 of Dinesh Karthik's best knocks this season
Dinesh Karthik was signed by the Royal Challengers Bangalore for ₹5.5 crore at the IPL 2022 mega auction in February. He was given the clear role of a finisher in the RCB setup.
Karthik had a brilliant campaign, scoring 330 runs at a mind-boggling strike rate of 183. He was adjudged the 'Super Striker of the Season' based on his performances throughout the course of the tournament.
Let's take a look at his top 3 knocks in this edition of the IPL.
#3 30* (8) vs SunRisers Hyderabad, Match 54
An extraordinary 30 off just 8 balls by Dinesh Karthik "The Finisher" and a brilliant 73 from the skipper Faf du Plessis help Royal Challengers Bangalore put a great total on board.
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RCB captain Faf du Plessis won the toss and elected to bat first in the afternoon fixture. They lost the wicket of Virat Kohli off the very first ball of the innings. Du Plessis and Rajat Patidar then stitched together a crucial partnership for the second wicket.
After the base was set up by the Faf-Patidar partnership, Glenn Maxwell decided to play his shots from the word go. However, it wasn't an easy wicket to bat on. Karthik walked in to bat in the 19th over after Maxwell was dismissed for 33 off 24 balls.
His first boundary came against Kartik Tyagi - he slogged a wide delivery over mid-wicket. He then took on the inexperienced Fazalhaq Farooqi in the final over, hitting him for three consecutive sixes and a four of the final four deliveries of the innings. This gave RCB great momentum going into the second innings. They won the game by a comfortable margin of 67 runs.
#2 44* (23) vs Rajasthan Royals, Match 13
This innings was arguably his best in a run-chase this season. RCB were set a target of 170 after a late flourish from Jos Buttler and Shimron Hetmyer. In response, RCB started off well in the powerplay. However, they started losing wickets in the middle overs.
Karthik walked in to bat when Bangalore required another 83 runs off 45 deliveries. All their prominent top-order batters had been dismissed by then. He started his innings with a bang as he took on fellow TN teammate Ashwin in the very next over. Twenty-one runs off that over gave RCB much-needed momentum in a tricky run chase at the Wankhede.
He stitched together a vital partnership with Shahbaz Ahmed. Both players took on their appropriate match-ups and ensured that the run-rate was never out of reach. Bangalore won the game by four wickets with five deliveries to spare on the back of a Karthik masterclass.
#1 66* (34) vs Delhi Capitals, Match 27
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Karthik's standout performance has to be this knock in the first leg of the tournament. RCB were in a spot of bother when Karthik walked in to bat. Maxwell looked in magnificent touch before he was dismissed. DK now had to face an unfavourable match-up, that of the left arm wrist-spin of Kuldeep Yadav in the middle overs.
However, Karthik's acceleration was absolutely unreal. He went from 7 off 13 balls in the 15th over to finishing with 66 runs at a strike rate of nearly 200. He played out the spinners and annihilated the pacers once he was well set in the middle. He made the most of his dropped chance in the 14th over.
His partnership with Shahbaz Ahmed ensured that Bangalore posted a high total on the board in the first innings. He essentially rescued RCB from a below-par total by perfectly pacing his innings. It eventually proved to be the difference between the two teams, as RCB won by 16 runs.