Robin Uthappa dropped from Karnataka team ahead of quarter finals

Veteran Karnataka batsman Robin Uthappa was dropped from the Ranji side following an average season. He was left out of the squad announced for the quarter final match against Tamil Nadu at Vishakhapatnam. Uthappa has been one of the mainstays of the state team and a senior member of the side. His exclusion is a clear indication that the Karnataka State Cricket Association (KSCA) is keen on building a team for the future.

Robin Uthappa has had a quiet season thus far. He could score just 328 runs in the 12 innings he batted at an average just above 27. The team was boosted by the team India trio of Manish Pandey, Karun Nair and KL Rahul. R Sudhakar Rao, the Chairman of Selectors of KSCA quoted, “With the three batsmen back, selection was a tough process. We collectively decided to rest Robin since we couldn’t play him in the XI.

The newcomers have done well and it would have been unfair to drop them, so we have taken the decision keeping the future of Karnataka cricket in mind.” Talking about Robin Uthappa, the Karnataka team head coach J Arun Kumar said that it is only the poor numbers this season that has seen him miss out. As per the quotes on Cricbuzz, the coach said, “There is nothing wrong with his batting, but sometimes numbers matter, especially when people are waiting to get a chance. It’s just the numbers.”

He further added that leaving out a big impact player like Uthappa was a big call. However, the team management respects him as a big match player. “We wanted to make sure we are going in prepared for the knockout stages. Otherwise Robin is batting really well. He’s getting off to great starts and he’s getting out to some odd balls. It’s sad that we have to rest a big player. We need big players like him, because they have been there and done that,” he added.

On the other hand, Indian team players Murali Vijay and Ravichandran Ashwin have been added to Tamil Nadu team for the fixture. Tamil Nadu will take on Karnataka in the quarter finals on December 23.