Kerala look to rope in Robin Uthappa after coach Dav Whatmore

The Kerala Cricket Association (KCA) had to pull a lot of strings to have netted in one of the most cosmopolitan coaches ever in Dav Whatmore. By the looks of it, Kerala is stopping at nothing to rope in several high profile players in their ranks.

Their latest source of interest for the KCA is the transfer of wicketkeeper-batsman Robin Uthappa into the team. Uthappa, who has only played for Karnataka, has been a heavyweight in Indian domestic cricket, has scored over 8700 runs in 130 first-class games at an average of almost 42.

Apart from that, he has scored over 5700 in all List A games with 14 centuries and 30 half-centuries. Looking at his form in this edition of the IPL as well as his Keralite connection, an anonymous Kerala cricket administrator confirmed as per reports in Marunadanmalayali that Kerala is seeking the services of the Karnataka batsman, due to the desperate need of an opener in the side.

“His mother is a Keralite, while his father hails from Coorg and he plays for the Karnataka Ranji team and he speaks Malayalam fluently. The Kerala team badly seeks an opener and he has been performing very well in the ongoing IPL. Things are being talked out and if things churn out well, Uthappa will be opening for Kerala this season” told the anonymous administrator to IANS

Currently, every Ranji side has an option of playing in with three outsiders. However, it is likely that only Iqbal Abdullah would be retained for the next season and  Jalaj Saxena, Bhavin Thakkar would be released.

Therefore the KCA has been scouting for another high-profile player apart from Robin Uthappa. However, KCA does not wish to reveal the other names they have been aiming for.

Kerala, earlier, had sought for the services of Dav Whatmore. Whatmore has coached many international sides over the years. He had been a part of the World Cup winning squad of Sri Lanka in 1996 in India. Further, Whatmore went on to coach Pakistan, Bangladesh and Zimbabwe.