Skip to main content

Uthappa- Forgotten Hero or Rising Star?


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
Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Final : India V Sri Lanka

Tendulkar has finally become the most decorated player in World Cricket. After having the hefty tag of ‘God’ attached to him for close to a decade now, World Cup was the only thing that was missing from him. If it was him who carried the hopes of the cricket fans in India, then today it was payback time for him. The generation of players that were inspired by him bought home the cup. Nothing encapsulated this better than what Kohli said. He said “ He carried the burden for 21 years, now is our time to carry him” The match itself started off in a misleading manner as the captains were not sure of what the other meant to do and were steadfast in the belief that they won the toss. In the end, the referee wanted the toss to be conducted. In what has been a superb turnaround from 2003 final, Zaheer started this final in a superb manner- he bowled three maidens on the trot. On the other hand, the surprise selection for final, Sreesanth endured a tough time- exactly the way he started off t...
Post a Comment
Read more

Enthiran

There was a time , when I was a Chiranjeevi fan, to an extent that I even defended his flop movies such as Rickshavodu, Big Boss and others of the same ilk. For me he was was the ultimate star- the superstar. And hearing tales of Amitabh Bachchan from my father did nothing to alter my views on Chiranjeevi's superstardom Towards the end of my graduation, that is circa 2005 in April, two movies released- Mumbai Express and Chandramukhi. I went to Mumbai Express for the first day first show and was not impressed. Rajnikanth, coming off a colossal flop called  Baba  and Chandramukhi was touted to be his comeback vehicle. Since we had nothing to do, we dragged ourselves to Chandramukhi and I was impressed with the fact that as a superstar, he allowed the female protagonist to run away with the credit Well when Sivaji released, I got to see Rajni mania first hand and what a sight it was! I was in Bangalore and there was a serpentine queue to procure the tickets. The sheer ...
3 comments
Read more

Jab Harry met Sejal

  I am writing this after Shahrukh Khan came out of the box-office rut with a movie called “Pathaan”. I am writing this about a movie that contributed to the box-office rut; Jab Harry met Sejal.   What can you say about the movie that’s unsaid? It’s an Imtiaz Ali movie. It will showcase travel. It will have the protagonists mouthing philosophical dialogues about love, life and relationships. It will have the protagonists “finding themselves” during the journey.   Shahrukh Khan and Anushka Sharma put in earnest efforts in the movie, but the movie lets them down. While I was watching the movie, the person next to me (who wasn’t even watching) asked if Anushka Sharma was playing a Gujarati in the movie. That in my eyes is Anushka Sharma nailing her bit.   The problem with the movie isn’t the premise but how the director deviates from the premise often. While it may be deliberate, it does seem that the director wants to leave his “signature”. At times, the mo...
Post a Comment
Read more