Not too long ago, he was seen as a valuable asset to Team India. For a while, he seemed ready to deliver on that promise, but of late, Robin Uthappa seems to have completely fallen off the national radar. Getting the highest bid at the Karnataka Premier League auction was a small consolation, under the circumstances.

Now, as the BCCI’s corporate event gets underway, the Karnataka batsman said he was keen to regain that tag, and was hoping that a good stint for Air India in this tournament, with national selector Narendra Hirwani as team coach, might just get him a comeback.

“In hindsight, one of the mistakes was that I played all over the batting order. I shifted up and down too much, and playing too many roles took a toll on me. Now I am looking for a fixed slot in the team, I am thinking of myself only as a top-order batsman,” he said.

Uthappa also said that he might return a more sober batsman. “I have realised the importance of building my innings. I am not tempted to walk down the track anymore. It’s one that I played a lot, but I don’t feel the need to play it now, and I am still scoring heavily. I’m trying to be more solid than spectacular.”

His methods meant he was branded a batsman for the shorter versions, and that impression is one that he is looking forward to change. “I have scored more than thousand runs in the domestic season in the longer format. I can make a good Test batsman and I am prepared to convince people on that.”

... contd.