After garnering just 73 runs from his first three outings in the inaugural Corporate Trophy, Robin Uthappa was on the brink of being forgotten with respect to national selection, at least for this season.
After garnering just 73 runs from his first three outings in the inaugural Corporate Trophy, Robin Uthappa was on the brink of being forgotten with respect to national selection, at least for this season.
But yesterday's unbeaten match-winning knock of 157 off 148 balls for Air India Red against Air India Blue in the final has increased his prospects of a recall to India's ODI side.
On a dicey Chinnaswamy Stadium pitch, Uthappa first saw off the new ball and then waged a battle to take the Reds to 284 for eight off their 50 overs. Later, Ankeet Chavan (3-29) and Yuvraj Singh's (3-30) left-arm spin was just too good for the Blues to cope with. Man of the Match Uthappa, however, said an India berth was not on his mind at the moment. "Thank God my season has started on a decent note," a relieved Uthappa said after the match.
"I enjoyed the way I batted out (the innings). But I'm not thinking of the India cap right now.
"It was all about understanding the importance of singles. I've been trying to work on a few things. Though I haven't been consulting any particular coach, I have been speaking to a few people and it's helping me," he said.
Skipper Yuvraj praised Uthappa's innings. "It was a very mature knock. You can see the improvement in Robin's batting," Yuvraj said.
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