Under their newly appointed captain Dinesh Karthik, the Kolkata Knight Riders have given a fair account of themselves so far in VIVO IPL 2018. The wicketkeeper-batsman has led KKR to three wins from six games – each of those wins being of convincing margins.

After a 5-day break, KKR return to action on Friday evening when they take on the Delhi Daredevils at the Feroz Shah Kotla Ground. Rather than depending on one or two individuals to score the runs, KKR have had contributions from several batsmen so far in their journey; Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Nitish Rana and Chris Lynn have made half-centuries, while Robin Uthappa has chipped in with useful contributions. However, the team’s top run-getter this season is their captain Dinesh Karthik, who despite batting at number five, has scored useful runs every time he has walked out to bat.

Reflecting on his batting form and his consistent contributions with the bat, Karthik, who interacted with the media on Thursday evening said, “It is just the way I have been preparing, getting ready for the games, I have been consistent in my thought process and that has helped me remain in the same space consistently.”

Karthik is himself in a new role – having been appointed as captain of an IPL team for the first time since 2014. In these last six games, the 32-year old has shown that he has enjoyed the challenges that come with captaincy. When asked about the leadership role, what he had learnt from it, and how it had changed him as a person, Karthik explained that after being made captain he had started to deal with people differently and his thought process had changed. “I think it has changed my approach towards a lot of people. I am thinking for ten other people on the ground a lot of the time; what they are thinking, how can I get the best out of them, etc.

Karthik also explained the difference in thought process between a regular player and how a captain would think. “If you are just a player, you are only thinking about yourself and trying to get the best out of yourself.That’s what the team needs.Whereas as a captain you are thinking for a few more people and trying to figure out what’s the best way to get the best effort out of a certain player in a certain situation.That’s what I am always thinking. You empathize a lot more when you’re captain.”

Though these are early days, Karthik’s record as captain-batsman in IPL make for impressive reading. While he averages 24.72 with the bat as a player, in the 12 matches he has been captain, his batting average has shot up to 35.30. Karthik has also scored his runs quicker while being captain; his strike-rate as captain is 133.20 as against 125.75 as a player.