Dinesh Karthik called up to Indian squad as cover

The wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik has been called up to the Indian squad as cover for openers Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir, who sustained injuries during the third one-dayer against Australia in New Delhi.

"Dinesh Karthik will be joining the Indian team in Mohali," N Srinivasan, the BCCI secretary, said in a statement. "Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir sustained injuries during the third match and a final decision on their availability for the fourth match, to be played at Mohali on November 2, will be taken on the morning of the game."

While Sehwag was hit on the foot by a Peter Siddle yorker in the eighth over, which prompted the physio's attention, Gambhir was struck on the neck by a Ricky Ponting pull. He did not field for the rest of the Australian innings. Neither batsmen managed a substantial score during the chase but India went on to win by six wickets to take a 2-1 lead in the seven-match series.

Karthik, 24, who was overlooked for the current series after last featuring in the Champions Trophy, has scored 502 runs in 33 ODIs at 23.90 and is likely to be a backup to captain MS Dhoni behind the stumps as well.