I don't have a future in red-ball cricket, Dinesh Karthik on skipping first-class cricket

Dinesh Karthik has not played a First-Class match for his state team Tamil Nadu since February 2020. While continuing as the team's white-ball captain, Karthik had realized that his days in the red-ball format are over and his absence would provide more chances for young batsman such as N Jagadeesan.

“The reason I don’t play red-ball cricket for Tamil Nadu is that it will block the chances of Jagadeesan and also I don’t have a future in red-ball cricket as well,” Karthik said during a talk on Aakash Chopra’s YouTube channel.

Karthik had transitioned to the role of a commentator, while still being an active player as he aims to break the stereotype of retired players getting into punditry. He recently led Tamil Nadu to the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy win earlier this year and is a key member of the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL.

Since making his debut in the 2002-03 season, Karthik had played 167 first-class matches for Tamil Nadu and scored 9,620 runs, including 28 hundreds and 43 fifties, at an average of 40.93.

He had also played 26 Tests for India, with the second Test against England in the 2018 tour proving to be his final appearance.