After winning their maiden IPL trophy and ending a long drought, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are set to defend their title in the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) against Sunrisers Hyderabad at their home ground on March 28. While talking about the RCB team in an exclusive interview, the wicketkeeper-batsman made a bold statement and said that Dinesh Karthik can be seen as the next coach of the Indian team.
It will be interesting to see how the young team takes the legacy forward in the upcoming season. The 2025 season was a turning point for the franchise, and expectations are now very high for the defending champions.
Jitesh Sharma’s bold statement on Dinesh Karthik
Jitesh Sharma, who is also a part of the RCB franchise as a wicketkeeper batsman, played a vital role in important games last season with his devastating batting skills. When big players like Rajat Patidar and Virat Kohli failed to do so, he not only stood up but also led his team to victory and took it to the finals.
Recently during an interview on The Ranveer Show, he made a shocking and bold statement about a former Indian cricketer. He said, “Dinesh Karthik can become the next Indian coach or the coach of any other big country like England or Australia.”
Why is Dinesh Karthik a strong candidate for international coaching?
Dinesh Karthik has been among the former Indian players who have been playing cricket for a long time. However, he did not get that many opportunities due to lack of wicketkeeping position due to legendary captain MS Dhoni. But whenever BCCI has shown confidence in Dhoni in his absence, he has performed brilliantly for the Indian team. Be it the Nidahas Trophy final, where he showed the world his match finishing skills by hitting a six off the last ball against Bangladesh, or the high-pressure games he played for RCB in the 2023 and 2024 seasons, his experience has always been top-notch.
Due to his in-depth knowledge of the game and batting skills, he was appointed as the batting coach for the RCB team last year. In the same year, he proved them right by helping them win the IPL trophy for the first time as a mentor and a batting coach. The win ended a 17-year drought by 6 runs against Punjab Kings on the final night at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Looking at the above performances of DK, there is no doubt that he can be a top contender for the coaching role for various teams, not just India, in the coming years.
Jitesh Sharma credits DK for his transformation
During the interview, Jitesh Sharma gave full credit for the success of the 2025 season to Dinesh Karthik. He talked about his improvement in the game and how Karthik changed his approach and mindset towards the game. Sharma said that Karthik has completely changed his perception about the game. He suggested that one should simply have faith in their skills and hard work, and things would start working in their favor.
Moving forward, Sharma said that in the coming years we can see Karthik becoming the coach of an international team because he understands the players very well. He has great potential and if India does not make him the coach in the coming years, then some other team like England or Australia can appoint him for the role of head coach. Sharma believes that DK’s tactical mind is needed by international teams today.
Jitesh Sharma is all set to take the legacy of RCB 2025 forward. He will be seen playing in the opening match against Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
Also Read: Virat Kohli to win Orange Cap: Jitesh Sharma makes bold prediction for IPL 2026
