RCB vs CSK: Dinesh Karthik unpacks the method to Tim David's madness
Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s batting coach Dinesh Karthik broke down the method behind Tim David’s extraordinary late assault in Bengaluru after the Australian powered RCB to a commanding win over Chennai Super Kings in their Indian Premier League 2026 clash on Sunday.
RCB had already set the tone through Rajat Patidar and Devdutt Padikkal, but it was David’s finish that took the game away from CSK. With 35 balls left in the innings when he arrived, David faced 25 of them and remained unbeaten on 70, striking eight sixes and three boundaries to lift RCB to 250 for 3. CSK were later bowled out for 207.
Only one other batter has scored as many or more runs without facing a ball in the first 14 overs of a T20 innings where ball-by-ball data is available. David’s innings also featured a decisive blow in the 19th over when he took Jamie Overton apart for 6, 4, 6, 6, 6, collecting 30 runs. One of those hits, a 106-metre six, cleared the ground and had the Chinnaswamy crowd on its feet, with Virat Kohli seen applauding from the dressing room.
RCB vs CSK: Scorecard | Highlights
Calling Tim David a naturally gifted ball-striker, Dinesh Karthik said his power-hitting is a blend of inherent ability and focused repetition in training.
“He is an extremely gifted hitter of the ball. Very smooth swing. He has got long levers. And a lot of the ingredients that you require to do big hitting, he has it naturally. For him, it’s all about ensuring that all those things are consistently in place when he is practising. Because he is a middle-order batter, he gets to play in games much lesser than a top-order batter,” Karthik told the broadcasters after RCB’s win.
Karthik added that David’s consistency in the middle order over the past year has placed him among the leading T20 batters in the world.
“So, sometimes, you need to address that in the nets, making sure he is hitting enough balls. He is feeling in a good space. And that’s all you can do. The rest of it, he is so good. It’s fair to say that he has been one of the top batters in the world in this format for about a good 12-18 months, with the consistency in the middle order,” he added.
David also credited his superb performance against CSK to the input provided by Dinesh Karthik, saying the guidance helped him prepare effectively for the conditions.
“I do not change my game much, but I have confidence from all the preparation that I do. It is nice to work with DK (Dinesh Karthik’s fraternity name), he is an experienced player in these conditions. I have been in the IPL for a few years and with that kind of preparation, you don’t put pressure on yourself to perform,” David said at the post-match presentation.
He added that the conditions and the support from teammates allowed him to play freely.
“Very pleased. It does not always happen that way. The skipper (Rajat Patidar, who scored 48 off 19 balls) was smoking it. And I just took some balls off him. It was super fun. Going in to bat with Jitesh (Sharma) and (Romario) Shepherd behind me really gives me confidence,” he said.
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