Dinesh Karthik’s career deserves to be remembered for more than just his flashy shirts

When Dinesh Karthik was asked why he took up commentary while being an active cricketer, he said he wanted to break stereotypes. It’s hardly common for playing professionals in India to take up the mic, but Karthik has bucked the trend, much like he has all through his playing career.

For the last half a year, Karthik has been synonymous with colourful Hawaiian shirts, snappy on-air comebacks and insightful comments. It’s an unusually appealing combination, and it could almost create an identity that stays with him for life. But none of it should eclipse the real reason why he walked into the commentary box in the first place, which is due to his credentials as a cricketer.

While a larger audience gets to know Dinesh Karthik better, those who have watched him play for years would look back at the highlight reels of a compelling career, one that was replete with many ‘what ifs’. But there were also shades of brilliance on the way.

For many, the earliest memory of Karthik, the international cricketer, is his acrobatic stumping of Michael Vaughan on debut. For a nation starved of a proper wicketkeeper for years, a fresh-faced Karthik’s stunning horizontal jump caught people’s attention and imagination. From then on, his incredible athleticism would suddenly light up television screens – the following year, he snaffled a blinder in Zimbabwe, and two years later, became a sensation for his overhead, cartwheeling grab in the T20 World Cup. Over the years, the energy hasn’t dimmed – last year, his one-handed stunner (aged 35) left Ben Stokes gasping in the IPL.

You wouldn’t have seen many Indian wicketkeepers move like Karthik; incredibly though, the agility wasn’t oppressed by age. In a different life, he could have appeared a lot more behind the stumps, but there was almost the looming shadow of MS Dhoni on him, who debuted just three months after Karthik’s Lord’s stumping and did not leave his spot for the next decade and more. “I knew the door was closed,” Karthik recently recalled.

Lesser-talented wicketkeepers would have taken a step back, but Karthik wasn’t just letting glovework dictate his place, often getting a spot in the team on the merit of his versatile batting. In 2007, he found a place as a specialist Test opener and grabbed his chance – first hitting a crucial fifty in Cape Town before then top-scoring for India on the 2007 England tour. Among all Indian openers in the 2000s, Karthik’s average was bettered only by Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir.

When his Test spot slipped away, Karthik reinvented himself in coloured clothing, adding further strokes to his natural batting flair. For the next decade, he became a shrewd white-ball batsman who could double up as a wicketkeeper, often finishing games with his calculated assaults. Long before his vibrant shirts, Karthik’s butter-smooth timing had its own charm.

He remained a popular commodity in the IPL (only MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma have played more matches), even as his international career blew hot and cold. Consistency was sometimes a problem, but in a role as fickle as his, the demands were also high. He also evolved into a respected senior statesman, and eventually a resourceful leader, known for his unflappable persona, eye for detail as a tactician and eloquent post-match addresses.

And then, there’s the Nidahas final, which will always be linked closely with Karthik’s legacy as a cricketer – safe to say it’s one of the most significant sub-fifty knocks by an Indian. In eight balls (and 29 runs), Karthik became a sensation – 14 years after his debut stunner. This time, there was Twitter to take his popularity to the next level.

It felt like Karthik was finally out of the looming shadow of India’s greatest keeper, but there weren’t as many appearances thereafter. Just over a year later, Karthik’s career stalled in India’s heartbreaking semi-final finish at the World Cup. But he adapted, again, carving his own niche as a bubbly commentator while still keeping his playing aspirations alive.

There’s no clarity on Karthik’s future as a cricketer, and he’s most likely not going to add to his 152 international appearances. But even his own popularity behind the mic shouldn’t take away the allure of his abilities behind the stumps, or his punchy playing style in front of them. An immensely resourceful, multi-talented cricketer, Karthik’s international cap count may not have matched his potential, but the Lord’s stumping, Durban stunner and the Colombo cameo will be remembered for long. Like it should be.