ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Rishabh Pant vs Dinesh Karthik, Fight For A Place In The Playing XI. In the Asia cup 2022 group a first league match between India vs Pakistan India, which went to the wire, saw India, defeating their neighbors by 5 wickets.
It was not a 100% complete performance from team India, but it has to be said that the way Hardik Pandya and Jadeja played in the middle was a treat to watch.
Before the start of the match, the fans were up for a surprise when the playing XI saw Dinesh Karthik given preference over Rishabh Pant. This has started a new debate about who among these two deserves to play and represent team India in the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2022, to be organized in Australia.
Seeing the team’s combination with Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul, and Virat Kohli at the top, one among Karthik and Pant has to be benched.
Also Read: Asia Cup 2022: Full List Of Man Of The Match Award And Results
Dinesh Karthik’s Come Back In IPL 2022
Dinesh Karthik had a phenomenal IPL this season. He scored 330 runs in 16 innings. His strike rate of around 184 was the highlight of his performance. It was evident that a stellar IPL was all the veteran cricketers needed to stage a comeback in the Indian team after 3 years.
He was selected for the series against South Africa, and the 36-year-old wicket-keeper batter scored 92 runs in 4 innings. Dinesh Karthik has grabbed the opportunity with both hands.
Rishabh Pant vs Dinesh Karthik
There is no denying the fact that Rishabh Pant, on his day, can tear apart any bowling attack in the world. But, sadly, Pant has not been in the best of forms since the IPL 2022. Although Pant scored 340 runs in 13 innings, he never looked threatening.
Also Read: ICC T20 World Cup 2022: Teams, Groups, India Schedule, And Predicted Squad Of All Teams
After the IPL, Pant played alongside Dinesh Karthik in the home series against South Africa and could score only 57 runs in 5 innings, at a poor strike rate of 106.
Dinesh Karthik’s experience and current form can prove to be a deciding factor for his inclusion and preference over Rishabh Pant in the playing XI. The 36-year-old, this year, has shown that he does not need time to settle and can hit from ball one.
He is becoming an important asset to the team in the lower order, which has made the batting order more dangerous.
Pant or Karthik Who Can Be In T20 World Cup 2022 Squad?
However, we should never ignore and undermine the importance of Pant in the team. Being a left-hander provides a great balance to the batting order. Had Jadeja not played the innings he produced against Pakistan in the last match, India might not have gotten the result they achieved.
Also Read: 5 Indian Players Whose Place Is Fixed In The ICC T20 World Cup 2022 Squad
The current batting lineup includes only 1 left-handed (if we exclude Pant), and that is Jadeja. The seaming wickets in Australia can prove to be a difficult one for the batters, especially Karthik, who has a small stature. Pant in such a condition can prove to be the best choice.
This Pant vs Karthik debate has given the team management a positive outlook, and both these batters can be utilized according to the pitch and other conditions.
It remains to be seen if the preference of Karthik over Pant against Pakistan was just an experiment or if the team management has some other surprises in store. Who Knows?? We might even see both of them playing together!!
