"His Career Was On The Line...": Dinesh Karthik Picks 'Selfless' Batter As Virat Kohli's First-Choice Replacement

No matter which format is talked about, Indian cricket is oozing with talent in all departments of the game, be it Test cricket, T20s or ODIs. Every now and then, stories of deserving players not getting the required opportunities in the team make headlines. It has been a similar story for Rahul Tripathi, a batter who has won the hearts of many with his ‘selfless' performances whenever an opportunity has been alotted to him. Dinesh Karthik, veteran Indian wicket-keeper batter, feels Tripathi should be the ‘first-choice' option whenever the selectors go out looking for Kohli's replacement.

In a chat on Cricbuzz, Karthik brilliantly explained the quality that Tripathi brings to the table. Having working with him at Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL), Karthik knows the how big a ‘team player' Tripathi is.

"Whatever I'm going to say now, I don't think it's for Rahul Tripathi, it's for all cricket fans, who follow Indian cricket very closely. Please don't have temporary amnesia in the near future, because the names replacing him will be big. And then we might go and look at the score and say he just scored a 40 or a 30," he said.

Hence, the veteran wicket-keeper batter strongly feels Tripathi should be the first-choice replacement of Kohli whenever the latter decides to step aside.

"I think we shouldn't forget that in 3 months time, 6 months time. Maybe he'll have a good IPL, maybe he won't but he deserves that Indian team number 3 spot whenever that comes. If Virat Kohli chooses to play okay but if Virat Kohli is not around he should be the first choice, not someone who has done well somewhere else," Karthik explained.

This is best and most beautiful tribute to @tripathirahul52 anyone can give . One of the most selfless player in the circuit who always keep him team above him every single time . Bro u r a joy to watch and @DineshKarthik thank you for saying this . pic.twitter.com/o8wBiM6EZc

— Raazi (@Rg86037221) February 1, 2023

Karthik highlighted how Tripathi refused to change his style of play even when his career was on the line and went out to do the job that the team required against Sri Lanka. 

“When his career was on the line, he did a fabulous job in the last game against Sri Lanka and this game. He's not someone, who's gonna get many chances, still he went out with that aggression, took high risk options and did exactly what the captain and the coach wanted.”

"The beauty about him is that's his DNA. To go out there and irrespective of how big the situation is, how big the game is, these are the kind of players you'll need because in the big matches he'll exactly do that,” he said.

Topics mentioned in this article

India Cricket Team Virat Kohli Dinesh Karthik Rahul Tripathi Cricket