Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) hottest cricketer so far this season, Dinesh Karthik, made his ambition to play for the country again known when he said that his aim is to do “something special for the country”.

Following a string of sterling performances from Karthik’s bat, the latest being an unbeaten 66 in a winnings cause against the Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede Stadium on Saturday, Karthik has emerged as one of the top contenders for a spot in the India squad for the ICC T20 World Cup, scheduled in Australia in October-November this year.

Karthik, who was adjudged player of the match on Saturday said, “I have bigger goals. I’ve been working really hard. My aim is to do something special for the country. This is part of my journey. I am doing everything I can to be part of the India team.

“Feels good to know that people associate calmness with me. Positions and calmness come from preparation,” added Karthik, following the 16-run win against Rishabh Pant’s side.

Australian pace bowler Josh Hazlewood, who had figures of 3/28, said he felt great after achieving the narrow win.

“It was a wicket lovely for batting in first six. As the game went on, we bowled well, took the pace off. It’s all about adapting to conditions on the night. Change of pace is important for me and also sequencing it right through the over.

“I think dots are really when batters feel pressure, so we want to get back-to-back dots. We’ve tried the yorker last game, but it all depends on the conditions. Sometimes it rewards yorkers, sometimes it doesn’t,” said Hazlewood.

RCB skipper Faf du Plessis said, “I think it is important from a top-order perspective that we contribute runs. We haven’t as a top order, but the other guys are doing so. Batting is tricky upfront, but the way Maxi (Maxwell) put pressure back on them was vital. But to get 190 you needed a special innings, and credit goes to the two boys Shahbaz and DK (Karthik). We felt like we haven’t been as good as we would’ve liked at death bowling, so today we had a special plan.

“It was pretty wet out there, and the start they had, many teams would fall away. But we stuck around. A good win. Experience is nice because you can trust players when it is going well and when it is not going well. The way DK is playing at the moment, I may sound like a broken record, but he is playing the best he has ever. He is so clear, calm, and composed. We considered batting first tonight, but the dew is a factor.”