
Credit: Twitter
India wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik had a hilarious exchange with two Australian legends, Ricky Ponting and Mark Taylor, during the fifth Ashes Test at The Oval. Karthik, who has been praised for his witty and insightful commentary, took a cheeky dig at Ponting and Taylor for being too optimistic about Australia’s chances of winning the fifth Ashes test and the series.
Australia are chasing a target of 384 runs to clinch their first Ashes series win in England since 2001 and openers David Warner and Usman Khawaja put on a solid partnership of 135 runs before rain stopped play. Ponting and Taylor, who were both former captains and part of the last Australian team to win the Ashes in England, were full of praise for the batsmen and confident of their team’s prospects for the final day.
Karthik, however, reminded them of the 2009 Ashes series, when Australia lost the final Test and the series in a similar situation. The 38-year-old played a clip of Andrew Flintoff’s brilliant run out of Ponting, who was batting on 66 with Michael Hussey. Karthik then asked Ponting to explain what happened next, as Australia collapsed to 348 all out and lost by a whopping 197 runs.
“The two Australian commentators here going gaga over how well Australia are going. Here is a moment, though, that happened a few Ashes ago. Ricky Ponting and Michael Hussey had put on a partnership of 127 before this happened. What happened after that, I think it is best Ricky explains. They lost the Test and the Ashes post that,” Karthik said, drawing loud laughter from the commentary box.
Ponting and Taylor took Karthik’s jibe sportingly and had a savage comeback as Taylor said, "Gee have a bit of that, there you go. Dinesh Karthik’s become an honorary Englishman overnight, hasn’t he?" Ponting added, "Just making sure he has a contract next year, isn’t he? Locking himself in the Sky box. Good work DK."
Karthik sportingly replied to the clip of this conversation on Twitter, saying, “A bit of banter during the ashes,” along with smiling emojis.
Karthik has been one of the most popular commentators in the Sky Sports team for the Ashes and the only Indian commentator for the series. The wicketkeeper-batsman is known for his banter in the commentary box, which often induces laughter. Meanwhile, the 2023 Ashes is poised for an entertaining final day as Australia require 249 runs in 98 overs to win with ten wickets in hand. Usman Khawaja and David Warner are looking good and will look to carry on batting as much as possible to avoid a collapse like the 2009 Ashes.
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