CHENNAI: Last Friday may have been unlucky for Dinesh Karthik as an IPL skipper, but it may very well have sparked a glimmer of hope for the 32-year-old in terms of furthering his Test aspirations.
Though the Karthik-helmed Kolkata Knight Riders' trophy hopes were dashed by SunRisers Hyderabad at Eden Gardens, the same clash also saw Orange Army stumper Wriddhiman Saha pick up a thumb injury courtesy a Shivam Mavi bouncer.
That riser has now placed a question mark over Saha's availability for Afghanistan's Test debut against India on June 14 in Bengaluru, with BCCI stating that they will "continue to monitor his progress" before taking a final call on his inclusion.
With the hosts' squad for this clash bereft of a back-up stumper, the chances of Karthik's Test comeback — he'd last turned out in one against Bangladesh in 2010 — may have very well received a big boost.
Though Parthiv Patel has been India's go-to back-up wicketkeeping option in their five-day scheme of things (he featured in the second and third Tests of India's tour of South Africa, when Saha was injured), Karthik has cemented his status in the shorter formats of late. Apart from being called up as a replacement for Saha during Test tour of South Africa, the Tamil Nadu veteran was the one who broke MS Dhoni's nearly-three-year streak as India's man behind the stumps, during the Nidahas Trophy.
There are doubts over Saha and Parthiv's ability as batsmen, particularly, if India decide to play only five regular batsmen. Karthik, being a better batsmen among the three, would provide the team more reliability with the bat.
The stellar form that Karthik was in during his maiden captaincy outing with Kolkata may ostensibly have pushed him up the wicketkeeping pecking order. "Saha is a brilliant stumper, no doubt. But he's had quite a few injuries of late, even during South Africa. And I don't see Rahul putting on the gloves, since he'll already have a lot of batting responsibilities to shoulder," remarked former India wicketkeeper Kiran More.
"The way Karthik has been batting in recent times will definitely come as an added bonus for India, if he does turn out against Afghanistan. Considering the form he had been since Nidahas Trophy, Karthik does have a good chance if Saha isn't available."
Apart from his tally of 498 runs (average and strike rate of 49.80 and 147.77) being Kolkata's best, it is also the most notched up by a wicketkeeper-captain in a single IPL season.
That apart, Karthik's skills with the big gloves during IPL had earned him praise on a consistent basis as he ended with 18 dismissals to his name, one short of the best tally for one season (Kumar Sangakkara with 19).
"Karthik kept superbly during the IPL. He's a tough nut to crack, and is also a very seasoned campaigner. There's no question regarding his skills as a stumper. He's been around in the shorter formats for a while, so there's no doubt over his level of skill," More said.
With England tour looming, the team-management has already hinted at having Karthik behind the stumps in Tests, something that could happen as early as Bengaluru.
rahul.ravi@newindianexpress.com