Manish Pandey ruled out of Champions Trophy, replacement announced!

Wicket-keeper batsman Dinesh Karthik is all set to don the national jersey once again after being selected to replace the in-form Karnataka batsman Manish Pandey after an injury to the latter ruled him out of the tournament. The Board of Control for Cricket (BCCI) have broken the news on the micro-blogging platform Twitter on their handle. Karthik was also part of the squad of the 2013 Champions Trophy winning Indian team.

The wicketkeeper-batsman was put on the stand-by list ahead of the tournament, and after an injury to the KKR batsman Manish Pandey, the batsman was drafted in the squad. The Gujarat Lions player has been in some exceptional form, and many a critic have tipped him to be a part of the squad purely as a batsman.

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In the 14 matches with the Lions this season, the 31-year-old amassed 361 runs at an average of 36 and nearly at a strike rate of 140. He could also replace the former Indian captain behind the wicket if MS Dhoni gets injured midway in the tournament.

Meanwhile, it would be bitter for the Karnataka batsman as he was on the verge of playing his first ICC tournament before being ruled out due to an injury. Although the pill is bitter, the batsman must take it in his stride and move forward to perform consistently.

The right-arm batsman wasn’t a part of the playing XI of Kolkata Knight Riders in the eliminator clash against the Sunrisers Hyderabad yesterday at the Chinnaswamy stadium in Bangalore. The match was eventually won by the Kolkata Knight Riders with eight wickets to spare in the D/L method.

The right-handed batsman from Karnataka has bailed out the Knight Riders from trouble many-a-time in this tournament for the two-time IPL champions, and his loss would definitely affect the stability of the Knight Riders batting unit.