Dinesh Karthik, on Friday, smashed his maiden T20I half-century – 16 years after his debut. The India finisher scored 55 runs in 27 balls against South Africa at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot. 

India won the fourth T20I by 82 runs and now the five-match series is tied at 2-2. 

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Karthik hit two sixes and nine boundaries, reaching his first T20I half-century since 2006 in 25 balls. After coming in to bat when India were 81/4, the Royal Challengers Bangalore player shared a 65-run stand with Hardik Pandya. The Gujarat Titans captain made 46 runs in 31 balls.

Dinesh Karthik smashed Pretorius’s slot ball over cow corner in the last over to bring up his fifty. The crowd chanted “DK..DK”. 

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With the fifty, Karthik, who is 37, became the oldest Indian batter to reach the mark in T20Is. Former India skipper MS Dhoni had achieved the feat against South Africa in 2018 when he was 36 years old.

OLDEST INDIANS TO HIT T20I FIFTIES

37 years, 16 days – Dinesh Karthik v South Africa, 2022*

36 years, 229 days – MS Dhoni v South Africa in 201

35 years and 1 day- Shikhar Dhawan vs Australia in 2020

Chasing 170, South African batters faltered and collapsed to 87 for nine in 16.5 overs with skipper Temba Bavuma retired hurt. Avesh Khan (4/18) led India’s brilliant display with the ball and recorded his career-best figures in the process. It was an away team’s lowest total in T20 Internationals in India.

“Just feels good. I am feeling very secure in this setup. In the last game things didn’t go according to plan, but I went and expressed myself today. I think DK is thinking a little better. He is able to assess situations better and that comes with practice. Credit to my coach. They bowled brilliantly upfront and made it tough for us. It was a tough pitch to bat on. It was hard to hit boundaries. Our openers have usually been kind enough to get us off to good starts,” Karthik said after the match.