Former India wicket-keeper batsman Dinesh Karthik sparked outrage among fans on social media when he neglected to include MS Dhoni in his all-time India XI. In a statement addressing the oversight, Karthik acknowledged his mistake and expressed regret for forgetting to include Dhoni. As a retired wicket-keeper batsman himself, Karthik admitted that it was embarrassing to overlook the need for a wicket-keeper in his team. He promptly rectified the error by affirming that Dhoni is an essential presence in his XI, across all formats.
"Bhai log. Bada galti hogaya (Guys I made a big mistake.) Genuinely it was a mistake," Karthik said in a video on Cricbuzz.
"I realised only when the episode came out. There were so many things happening that when I put this 11, I forgot the wicketkeeper. Luckily Rahul Dravid was there and everybody thought I was going with a part-time wicketkeeper. Bu genuinely I didn't think Rahul Dravid as a wicketkeeper,. Can you believe being a wicketkeeper, I forgot to have a wicketkeeper? It is a blunder," said Karthik.
Karthik made the strategic decision to include Dhoni in the No. 7 position on his team, recognizing the Ranchi-born icon as one of the greatest players in the game.
"And for me, let's be clear. Thala Dhoni is a lock in any format, not only in India. I feel he is one of the greatest cricketers to have ever played the game. If I had to redo that team, one change I would do is, Thala Dhoni in at 7. And he will be the captain of any Indian team that is there," he further said.
Dinesh Karthik's All-Time XI: Rohit Sharma, Virender Sehwag, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, Virat Kohli, Yuvraj Singh, Ravindra Jadeja (MS Dhoni the new addition), Ravichandran Ashwin, Anil Kumble, Jasprit Bumrah and Zaheer Khan.
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