M30: KKR vs CSK – Robin Uthappa 80* 1:23 15,657 Views There is a sense of flair when Robin Uthappa gets going. The backlift, the eye contact, the nimble feet movement and the follow through after the shot; all seem to be in perfect synchronization as if it were an orchestrated tune played in a room. Uthappa played the perfect batting tune in front of a capacity crowd at the Eden Gardens on Thursday night.

Chasing a stiff target of 166 on a dicey Eden pitch, Uthappa along with hard-hitting all-rounder Andre Russell scripted a successful run-chase to give the Chennai Super Kings a sound seven-wicket thumping. The moment the winning runs came off the penultimate ball of the match, there was a roar from Uthappa, a look towards the dressing room and a fist pump that signified a job well done. Before the unbeaten 80 against Chennai Super Kings on Thursday, Uthappa had had three scores of thirties.

He had been getting starts but had failed to convert them into ‘valuable’ ones, as he puts it. In this chat with iplt20.com, Uthappa gives us a sneak peek into his goals for the season and his want to be pillar of KKR’s batting.

How pumped up was the side to win against CSK after a close loss to them in Chennai a few days back?That loss really hurt us. I thought in that game we did a lot of things right. We realise that this season we haven’t been closing games as we should have been.

We weren’t closing games to the standards that we had set for ourselves and I am really glad that we were able to do that today. To do it in a clinical fashion against an extremely strong side like Chennai Super Kings is satisfying.How do you gauge your batting performances in the tournament so far?It took me a little time to get off the blocks.

I have just come back from the Ranji Trophy, so you don’t set yourself up for T20 immediately after that. We did not play any practice games, so it took a little time to get off the blocks. I had to make a little tweaks to my technique as well.

I was hitting the ball well since the first game but I wasn’t really converting those starts. That began to pinch me a little bit, especially when I wasn’t able to convert my flying start in the previous game into a big one. I wasn’t able to seal it for my side.

I was extremely disappointed after that. I do set some high standards for myself and I do believe I can win matches for my team. To occupy the crease from over number one to twenty should have given you immense satisfaction tonight.

I am happy with the way I finished the game today. It is very satisfying and feels extremely good. I know that I need to keep doing it and that is when I will be doing my job.

That is my job - to be able to hold one end up for my team, be that pillar for my side and make sure I am there right till the end when you finish games. When you finish the game as an opening batsman it is pleasing to know that you have worked your way through your skills throughout the innings. As an individual it is pleasing for me but it must also have a positive impact on the side.

If it doesn’t have a positive impact, there is no real meaning to it. That is the beauty of the game. If you play really well and your team doesn’t end up on the winning side, there is no meaning to your performance.

You need to make sure that those performances are meaningful and contribute to the team’s victory. Do you think you were edgy to begin with tonight but found your mojo in the latter part of the innings?It was the kind of wicket that was stopping just a touch. Shot making wasn’t really easy.

We couldn’t hit through the line like we could hit on good wickets. This is not a regular Eden wicket, there was a little bit of grip in it. I wasn’t hitting the ball as well as I should have.

I didn’t get that feel off my bat early on. I probably got that feel only after I hit an Ashish Nehra ball for a six. Before that there wasn’t a good feeling.

I knew I had to graft it today and the important thing was that I realised I had to hold one end up. It didn’t matter how I was feeling, my job was to hold one end up successfully. I was confident if I did that, our side would end up winning the match.

When you have the ability to do that, you might as well do it. It is your job.Three quick wickets in the hut, you sure had your task cut out with Andre Russell.

Isn’t it?I knew that once Gautam Gambhir and Manish Pandey got out, I had to hold one end up. I had to hang in there and soak up the pressure as much as possible. Andre Russell came out there and all credit to him to have played a blinder like that.

It made my job a lot easier. I had to rotate the strike and give him the strike and the opportunity to see the ball and hit the ball. He hits them very clean and it is great to watch from the other end.

I think Russell has really evolved as a cricketer. He has grown and I feel he is one of the strongest all-rounders in the world today. Was it one of the reasons he was sent up ahead of Yusuf Pathan?We recognised that and realised we need to give him a little more time in the middle.

Our gameplan was to make sure he gets as many balls as possible while chasing. In that way even he could soak up pressure well. The idea was for one of the top three to stay there and complement his batting.

In that way it just works out in the best interest of the team. You finally have got some vital runs under your belt. What kind of a batting space are you in at the moment?For me growth has always been a huge factor.

I always want to keep growing, evolving, and keep getting better as a batsman. Contributing to my team’s success is the only goal I have at the moment. I want to make sure that every performance of mine adds value to the team.

I want to make sure that my performances help the team reach its goal. I am looking to improve as a player every day..

Source: http://www.iplt20.com/news/2015/features/6432/zaheers-presence-was-of-massive-help-coulter-nile