For every Mark Boucher, there was a Nic Pothas. For every Dave Richardson, there was a Steve Palframan.

So, for every MS Dhoni, there was Dinesh Karthik.

But credit to ‘DK’ not only for his ability, but also character that he battled away and still went on to play 180 matches for India, which included being part of the first-ever T20 World Cup championship-winning squad in South Africa.

Karthik is back here after all those years, but in a different guise as he is set to be the first Indian player to feature in the SA20 when he debuts in today’s clash against Sunrisers Eastern Cape (1pm start) at Boland Park.

“It’s been a place where I’ve really enjoyed playing my cricket. Some of my best memories have come from South Africa, winning the T20 World Cup. That, of course, also started a big trend in India called the IPL,” he said.

“Things like that originated because of what happened in South Africa, so I have very fond memories. So, when the offer was there to join the Royals set-up, I thought it was a good team to be part of.

Roooooooot & Lhuuuuuuuuuu 💗 pic.twitter.com/orh0tkoupR
— Paarl Royals (@paarlroyals) January 9, 2025

“Having been part of the IPL for so many years, but never the Royals... and a lot of my friends have played for this franchise and only said good things.

“So, I am very excited because I also heard great things about the tournament and how competitive it is.”

The Royals boast some of the finest young talent in the country in pace sensation Kwena Maphaka and his former SA Under-19 teammates Lhuan-dre Pretorius and Dewan Marais, along with Proteas newbie Nqaba Peter.

But as former Liverpool defender and BBC pundit Alan Hansen once said that “You don’t win anything with kids”, Karthik’s experience and ‘death’-hitting ability will certainly be required when the youthful Royals line-up open their SA20 campaign against the defending champions at Boland Park.

DK is seriously impressed with the talent in South Africa 🫡💗 pic.twitter.com/NvzSHXIeXP
— Paarl Royals (@paarlroyals) January 10, 2025

“I always feel that knowledge learned is one side of it, but knowledge shared is a lot more fruitful,” Karthik said.

“So, in my experience, when a young boy comes to speak to me, I am very happy to share my experiences. That’s the least I can do.

“Part of me being picked to come here is not just to showcase my skill, but also help the growth and help young South African cricketers.”

Meanwhile, Sunrisers coach Adrian Birrell admits his team were not on the mark in their 97-run opening defeat to MI Cape Town at St George’s Park on Thursday, but is confident his team will bounce back quickly.

In fact, Birrell views it as a positive omen as the Sunrisers did not win their opening game in either of their two previous successful SA20 campaigns.

“We got blown away in two spells. (Trent) Boult was really good in his third over. He got us into trouble, and then Delano Potgieter got five (wickets). He blew us away at the back-end. We're not going to over-analyse this,” he said.

"𝙒𝙚'𝙫𝙚 𝙜𝙤𝙩 𝙩𝙤 𝙧𝙚𝙨𝙚𝙩 𝙖𝙣𝙙 𝙨𝙩𝙖𝙧𝙩 𝙖𝙜𝙖𝙞𝙣 𝙞𝙣 𝙩𝙝𝙚 𝙣𝙚𝙭𝙩 𝙢𝙖𝙩𝙘𝙝." 🗣️

Coach Adi talks of plenty of positives but also a lot of learnings from Game 1⃣ pic.twitter.com/OkrCbnBjBJ
— Sunrisers Eastern Cape (@SunrisersEC) January 10, 2025

“We lost by a big margin… 97 runs is a massive loss. It puts us in a situation where our net run-rate is poor. We’re going to have to play well from here.

“I’m disappointed, but certainly not despondent.

“I believe in my team. I believe in our players. I’m sure we’ll bounce back in a couple of days. It’s not how you start, it’s how you finish.”

The Sunrisers had a couple of injury problems to manage, with leading seamer Ottniel Baartman and all-rounder Patrick Kruger ruled out of the opening game.

David Bedingham also only arrived back in South Africa on the morning of the game from a whirlwind trip back to the UK after the conclusion of the Proteas Test on Monday.

“We would have liked to have had another seamer, but we got a few injuries, and it didn’t sort of balance our team,” Birrell said.

“Ottniel is slightly injured. He’s close to getting back on the park, but he just wasn’t ready for this game.

“So, we did miss him, and hopefully he’ll be back in the next match or the match thereafter – but he’s close.

“We also didn’t have Patrick Kruger, and he balances our team a little bit with his ability to bowl.” | Independent Media Sport

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