In-form Dinesh Karthik is feeling 'very secure in Team India setup'

Dinesh Karthik scored his maiden T20I half-century - more than 15 years after making his debut in the format on Friday in Rajkot as India thrashed South Africa to register a comfortable 82 runs win. With this victory, India have levelled the series 2-2 with one match still to go.

Dinesh Karthik who was the player of the match in the post-match presentation said: "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."

Talking about SA bowling, he said: "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. When I went in Hardik told me to take my time. It was important that players who have been around for long need to stand up on such pitches."

After India's 82-run victory, the series has now been perfectly set up for a scintillating finale in Bengaluru. South Africa were brilliant in the first two matches but the hosts have fought back with great gusto to level up the scores.

The fifth and final clash will be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on June 19, with a winner being hard to predict. With the T20 World Cup not far away, a pressure cooker situation though will be the perfect preparation for both the sides heading into Australia.

Talking about the 5th match in the series, Karthik said: "Bangalore is a home ground for me. I haven't played with RCB, but have played a lot over there. It is good to see a bilateral series going down to the final match. To see the pressure being absorbed in the third and fourth games was something we would relish."

"Credit to Rahul Dravid; there is a certain sense of calmness. The dressing room is a calm place right now. It is important to learn to embrace pressure. It feels secure and fuzzy. That clarity and the environment helped," he added. (ANI)