Playing cricketing shots is important to succeed in T20s, says Dinesh Karthik

GUJARAT LIONS' WICKETKEEPER Dinesh Karthik says playing too many innovative strokes in the shortest format is not enough as you need to play cricketing shots as well to succeed.

As reported by PTI, Karthik said,

“T20 format is not all about playing innovative shots, as batsman like Virat Kohli have been scoring lot of runs by playing only cricketing shots. In this format, the batsmen should stay calm and execute his shots selection properly to score runs."

Karthik who has represented Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore in the IPL so far, is most effective in the top three with the bat as he doesn't have the power to hit the big shots later on in the innings. 

Batting in the top three gives him the opportunity to take advantage of the powerplay overs. The deeper he bats in the order, the more difficult it will get for him to have a high strike rate.That said, Karthik has shown in the past that he too can play some cheeky shots to get some useful runs. 

Karthik will likely play all the games for the Lions as a keeper and it will be interesting to see how the floater in the IPL goes about his business this time round. 

The Gujarat Lions open their IPL campaign on April 11 against Kings XI Punjab at Mohali.