Dinesh Karthik is always ready to deliver whatever the situation may be and his experience and repertoire of strokes make him a suitable candidate to provide the final flourish for India at the death overs, skipper Rohit Sharma said.
Wicket-keeper batsman Karthik (29 of 8 balls), who has made sporadic international appearances, produced a last-ball six as India pulled off an incredible chase beating Bangladesh by four wickets in the Nidhas T20 Tri-series final, here last night.
"He was with us on the previous tour in South Africa and didn't get much game time. To do what he did today will give him a lot of confidence going forward," Rohit told reporters.
"Most important thing he has is belief in himself. Whatever situation comes, he's ready - whether he bats up the order or down the order. That's the kind of guy we need in our team."
"But I told him: 'I want you to bat and finish off the game for us, because whatever skill you have, it will be required in the last three or four overs'. That is the only reason he was not batting at No. 6 in the 13th over when I got out. He was upset with that, but he'll be quite happy now how he finished off the game."
"We knew he would come out with his offcutters and Dinesh probably would have been a better choice at that point. He has done it for his state team and also for Mumbai Indians."
"The skillset that he has - he's quite courageous to do what he wants to do in the middle. It's not just one or two games. He consistently bowled in the Powerplay, and always kept us in the games. We identified him as one of the promising talents who can play for the national team for many years. This tournament will give him a lot of confidence."
I've always wanted to read the batsmen's mind, and that's what I have been trying to do. I really wanted to be there when we win the game and I think Dinesh bhai played really well and it turned out to be a memorable series for me."
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