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Dinesh Karthik’s iconic last-ball six against Bangladesh to be India’s first sports NFT

Karthik joined hands with his brother-in-law and top-ranked squash player, Saurav Ghoshal for the NFT art project.

The memorable last-ball six by the Indian wicket-keeper Dinesh Karthik, which helped India to seal a stunning victory from the jaws of defeat against Bangladesh in the Nidahas Trophy final will be captured in the form of a Non-fungible token or NFT. 

The memorable event will be India’s first-ever sports NFT, which will be an animation of that last ball, Karthik’s six, and the celebration. The NFT art will consist of a voice-over by Karthik, revealing his emotions and thoughts while facing the last ball and hitting a six.

The Rohit Sharma-led India was facing Bangladesh in the tri-series final. The visitors, India were chasing a target of 167. After a decent start to the chase, following Rohit’s half-century, India was cruising comfortably towards the total. The Indian team lost wickets in the middle-overs, which shifted the momentum towards Bangladesh. With 34 runs needed off the last two overs, Karthik walked out to bat and smashed 19 runs off the next six balls. After a couple of dot balls and Vijay Shankar’s wicket, India needed five runs off the last delivery. Soumya Sarkar bowls a full outside off, Karthik makes a fine contact which sent the ball sailing over the slopes. The wicket-keeper’s six registered an emphatic victory for India. 

This is one of the best moments of my life. To get it out there graphically and have people look at it, not to mention the fact that I was an integral part of the whole process was something I thoroughly enjoyed,” said Karthik, speaking to CNBC-TV18.

Karthik joined hands with his brother-in-law and top-ranked squash player, Saurav Ghoshal for the NFT art project. The duo started working during the lockdown last year and spent time understanding the process. 

I was keen on getting my emotion out there in the artwork. I wanted to encapsulate the moment and take the fan through what it must feel like for a cricketer, as the bowler stands at the top of his mark,” said Karthik, “I wanted everybody who has the opportunity to look at this NFT, to feel those moments.”

The NFT auction will be held between October 12 and October 22, 2021, on https://rarible.com. The art will be awarded to the highest bidder. Along with the NFT art, the highest bidder will also receive a jersey signed by Karthik, which he was wearing in the Nidahas Trophy final. With the rise of cryptocurrency and the blockchain, Karthik’s initiative of launching the NFT and getting into this booming sector has come at the right time. 

I did a bit of a market research and was interested in exploring this space,” he said, “NFTs are the future, they are niche and unique products, are going to be part of the new way art is looked at.”

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