The video of retired wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik's heroics in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy Final has the most views in the history of YouTube.
Karthik emerged as the star performer in India's four-wicket win over Bangladesh in the Nidahas Trophy Final in Colombo on March 18, 2018. When the Men in Blue required 34 off 12 balls to win the match, Karthik stepped up for the team and pulled off the 167-run chase on the last ball of the match.
In the 19th over, Karthik took Rubel Hossain to the cleaners as he smashed him for 22 runs, bringing down the equation to 12 off six balls. When India needed five runs off 1 ball to win, Karthik smashed a six off Soumya Sarkar to seal the victory.
Dinesh Karthik's final over heroics in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy Final have been repeatedly watched by fans on YouTube even after six years, with a record of 243 million views (24.3 crore) and 1.8 million likes. It is the only cricketing video to date to have over 200 million on YouTube.
Interestingly, the second-most watched cricketing video on YouTube is from the 2018 Nidahas Trophy Final, where Dinesh Karthik smashed Rubel Hossain for 22 runs in the penultimate over of Team India's run-chase. The video has 149 million views (14.9 crore) and 1,1 million likes on YouTube.
With legendary wicketkeeper-batter pulled the curtains down on his professional career after playing his last IPL match for Royal Challengers Bengaluru against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2024 Eliminator in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, Dinesh Karthik's valiant innings in the 2018 Nidahas Trophy Final has once again became a talking point as it is considered one of the greatest moments in the cricketing history.
Dinesh Karthik didn't enjoy enough success in international cricket as he was in and out of India squad. The 38-year-old lost his place to MS Dhoni, who became the first-choice wicketkeeper and went on to lead Team India across all formats.
Karthik made his international comeback in the T20I series against South Africa in 2022 and later, he was picked in India's squad for the T20 World Cup in Australia.
In international career, Karthik has amassed 3463 runs, including a century, at an average of 27.70 in 180 matches.
'No fairytale endings in sport': Dinesh Karthik
Dinesh Karthik stated that Royal Challengers Bengaluru had a hard day when things didn't go in their way in the IPL 2024 eliminator against Rajasthan Royals. Veteran wicketkeeper-batter applauded his team effort to make an incredible comeback that culminated in their qualification to playoffs.
"There is no fairytale ending in sports and today we witnessed that. There is always a hard day when things do not go your way. It was that day. As it is in the evening games, dew came and it became easy to bat on. But still, we should be proud of the fight we put up. That is all we can ask for." Karthik said in a RCB video.
"Attitude matters. The belief in wanting to do something special matters. On both counts, RCB had a really special season. A season where a lot of people will look at and say 'Wow, good effort'. We are proud of ourselves and I also hope fans are also proud of us for what we have done this year," he added.
Dinesh Karthik ended his IPL career on high by aggregating 326 runs, including two fifties, at an average of 36.22 and a strike rate of 187.36 in 15 matches. Karthik is the 10th leading run-getter of the tournament, amassing 4842 runs, including 22 fifities, at an average of 26.32 and a strike rate of 135.36.
