Do you have any memories of the
man who scored 86 in his debut game against England and also had his biggest
moment to savour against them? To drop further clues would mean to reveal the
identity of the man
In his most popular ODI innings,
he bought India back from the dead to actually level the series. It was a game
in which Sachin Tendulkar was awarded the Man of the match. He hasn’t played an
ODI for more than three years now
Now to make the identity of the
player a giveaway, he bowed down in front of a packed stadium after leading
India to a win over arch rivals Pakistan, in a bowl out. Yes it is Robin Venu
Uthappa. After exploding into India’s collective senses in that match at Oval,
he quickly slipped down the favourite charts
Yet people believe that he has it
in him to knock a few bowling attacks over. It must be him and Irfan Pathan,
whose non-selection remains a mystery to their followers. While Irfan’s slide
is mysterious, Uthappa’s is crystal clear
The stubbornness or the
unwillingness to change the natural game or harness the abilities is the reason
behind the people who matter, not favouring him. One of the shocking statistic
about him is the fact that after that path
breaking innings at Oval, he crossed 50 only once in 25 matches. The first conclusion to be drawn
from this damning piece of statistic is, Uthappa doesn’t have it in him to stay
put at the crease for a long haul
Perhaps it is his bad luck that
India unearthed a player of similar mould in Rohit Sharma. He promised a little
more solidity than what Uthappa did. However both these players were consigned
to sidelines when Kohli came onto the scene. Kohli displayed the nerve by
performing time and again in tight chases
In this context, it was refreshing
to watch Uthappa take on the bowling of India Green yesterday at Nagpur. What
it put beyond doubt was the fact that if he stays at the crease for some period
of time, he has the ability to take his team to large totals. The treatment that
was meted out to Ojha and Mishra- India hopefuls both- would stay in the mind
for a long time to come
After giving Mishra the stick, he
unfolded his entire repertoire for Ojha to see. He attacked him from the word
go. He started by lofting him against the turn to long-on and then stayed
beside the line as he played a couple of magical inside out strokes. For greater
effect, he swept and reverse-swept powerfully. The joy on reaching the
milestone was evident as he raised his arms up in celebration and let out a
roar
This is the Uthappa that the
average Indian wants to see. One who takes the attack to the opposition camp
and comes out trumps. If he can do that consistently, he could yet be one of
the pillars of the Indian batting. He has age and talent on his side. Its just
the consistency that needs to be honed
Comments
Post a Comment