NEWS
Follow UsPlaying only his third game of the season, Robin Uthappa played one of the most significant innings on Sunday night to help CSK to the final. His partnership with Ruturaj Gaikwad changed the complexion of the game before MS Dhoni put the final touch to the innings. However, it was unbelievable a few days ago, when despite scoring heavily in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy, Uthappa didn't get a game for the majority of the season. But Uthappa admitted that at CSK, there was no insecurity.
"I always maintain that this has been one of the most secure franchises going around and everyone feels secure within the group and I think that only makes a player only give that much more to the franchise. After KKR, when Gauti was the captain I really enjoyed myself there and felt really secure in that group but after that, this is the most secure I've felt while playing cricket in a while," Uthappa said in the post-match presentation.
In six Vijay Hazare matches last season, Uthappa amassed 377 runs at 75.40 but his strike rate of 131.81 made him an obvious contender for a starting role at CSK. However, with Suresh Raina there, CSK had to keep him on the bench for a while. The Karnataka-born batter admitted that there were doubts creeping into his mind but he knew that his chance would come sooner than later.
"There were days when there were doubts, to be honest, when you don't get to play these doubts tend to creep in and I try to make sure that I shut myself from the outside world, I just stuck to that and I just felt that at some point I will be able to contribute to the team in a way that's really meaningful and I'm really grateful for God that I have been able to do that today," the former Indian opener admitted.