Picture Credit: Twitter/IPL
Dinesh Karthik is on a mission to defy age and earn a place in the squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup, scheduled to take place later this year in Australia. The Bangalore batter has been in great form throughout the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League and is consistently scoring quick runs. He has emerged as one of the most prominent finishers in the tournament due to his blistering knocks.
Karthik put up a similar show on Sunday afternoon as he smashed Hyderabad bowlers for cleaners. He scored an unbeaten 30 in just eight deliveries and stamped his authority as a finisher in the team. Karthik targeted IPL debutant Fazalhaq Farooqi in the final over and hit three sixes and a four of the last ball of the game. His knock propelled RCB to 192 in their 20 over.
Highly impressed with Karthik's innings, Virat Kohli, who had a dull outing after getting out on a golden duck, bowed down to the finisher after the latter reached the dressing room. Virat Kohli's gesture lauding Dinesh Karthik came as a sigh of relief for many as the former skipper was looking too disappointed with his performance, and even head coach Sanjay Bangar was seen consoling him in the dressing room.
Watch Virat Kohli's reaction:
In response to Bangalore's 192, Hyderabad had a troublesome start as their openers were dismissed on a duck in the first over of the game. Kane Williamson got run out by Shahbaz Ahmed without playing a ball, followed by Glenn Maxwell dismissing Abhishek Sharma on the fifth ball of the over. However, Rahul Tripathi and Nicholas Pooran are building a crucial partnership for their side. Also, Aiden Markram (21 off 27) played a brief cameo in the middle order. Hyderabad is reeling at 93-4 in 13 overs of the game.