“He replaced me in all formats”, India Star on being shadowed by the legendary skipper

‘Mahendra Singh Dhoni’; an Indian who loves cricket would be well aware of the name. Since Dhoni became the captain of the side, the Indian team its new heights. The legend from Ranchi, Jharkhand is an inspiration to many youths and a pioneer of cricket. A few months before he debuted against Bangladesh in December 2004, another wicketkeeper began his journey for the Indian Team. The player whom we well know now is Dinesh Karthik. The Tamil Nadu-based cricketer made his debut in an ODI match against England at the Lord’s in September 2004. Yet Dhoni’s influence in the team soon made Karthik a backup option in the India team and came under the shadow of the former Indian skipper. 

While the legendary keeper MS Dhoni went on to guide India to three International titles, Karthik never left hope and played for India at intervals, in fact, is still playing at the highest level. Also, he did play for India in the 2022 T20 World Championship. In recent times, Karthik shared his thoughts on his debut when the Dhoni mania was just commencing. 

"I made my debut before him. We went together on an India A tour and from there I got picked for the Indian team, he was still there in India A team," Karthik said on a podcast.

"That was the first time I played a four-day match together with him. I did so well that they picked me for the Indian team. From there, they went on another trip, there was an ODI tournament where he just blasted it. People stood up and said there is nobody like him. They said he's a special player. Obviously, I came to the Indian team, but by then the Dhoni mania was so big that you had to pick him. He then replaced me in all formats and he did very well. At the end of the day, it is all about taking opportunities. You got to be ready to take opportunities.

"I was chasing excellence. I was constantly on the path of becoming the best cricketer in the world. Dhoni was there, but he wasn't there – that wasn't my lookout. He was doing very well for himself. I knew that he had settled into the team. He made no mistake at the start. They sent him up an order, he got a hundred in ODI. He then went to Test cricket and scored 85. He kept brilliantly. Most importantly, he became a brand overnight. People were after him. He was a hugely popular sportsperson right from the outset. I was always the understudy but I was always on the lookout for opportunities, doing something special."

Karthik is now gearing up for the Indian T20 League, where he plays for the Bangalore franchise. Whereas Dhoni is preparing for the Indian T20 League where he is the captain of the Chennai side who are the four times champion in this league.