'I was really struggling for...': Virat Kohli discloses Dinesh Karthik's aid in times of hardship

The IPL 2024 was an emotional rollercoaster ride as several fans believe it will be the last of MS Dhoni. Clarity is yet to be received on that matter, but another prolific wicketkeeper-batter has revealed that this year was his IPL season. RCB stumper Dinesh Karthik has been calling for it that this will be his final season, and the RCB-RR eliminator was the one that made it clear that Karthik is sailing to the sunset. While his IPL retirement is imminent, Virat Kohli shares his bond with the star cricketer.

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Virat Kohli reveals how Dinesh Karthik helped him during his tough time

Virat Kohli, who had an average of about 22 and three ducks in the IPL 2022, acknowledged that he was having form issues. He commended the knowledge and poise of Dinesh Karthik, who helped him during his tough times.

Kohli reflected back to his pleasant times with Karthik throughout their time together, both as an international and as a franchise player. Karthik, who just finished off a strong season for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), amassed 326 runs at an average of 36.22 across 15 games, including two half-centuries and a season-high 83. It is known that Karthik will not be playing in the IPL again, even though he has not formally declared his retirement.

Along with sharing his early thoughts on Karthik from their first partnership at the 2009 Champions Trophy in South Africa, Kohli also mentioned how, as his career progressed, Karthik become more mature and collected. In a video posted by RCB on X, Virat Kohli revealed: 

“First time I met DK, I remember we were playing in South Africa if I am not wrong in the Champions Trophy 2009. It was the first time I shared the change-room with Dinesh and I found him to be very amusing, I would say hyper-active, confused person, most of the times he was moving all over the place, never stopping. That was my first impression of Dinesh,” 

“Outstanding talent, brilliant batter to watch and my first impression and present day impression are not far apart. Just that he has become wiser and calmed down a lot.”

Kohli talked back to the 2022 Indian Premier League, a season in which he was a poor scorer, with three ducks and only 341 runs from 16 matches, two half-centuries, and a strike rate of 115.98. The 35-year-old disclosed that Dinesh Karthik sat down with him during these trying moments, giving him much-needed encouragement and confidence boosts. He added: 

“Off the field, I have had some really nice and interesting conversations with him. He is wise man, has great knowledge about a lot of things, not just cricket. I have thoroughly enjoyed my conversations with him. Even in that phase in 2022 when I did not have a great IPL season, I was really struggling for confidence, he sat me down a couple of times and gave me a very honest explanation of how he is seeing things and maybe I am not able to see them myself,” \

“So, I just like his honesty and courage to go and speak to anyone about things that he dearly feels about. And that I think is the most special thing for me when it comes to Dinesh and that’s one thing I have always cherished about him. That’s why we get along really really well,” 

Dinesh Karthik, in addition to being an important element of the RCB setup in recent seasons, has also had an impressive career with the Indian national side. While he was not a regular in the squad, his career lasted 20 years, during which he played 26 Tests, 94 ODIs, and 60 T20Is.