‘Gauti, DK have winning mentality’
Having played under Gautam Gambhir and now Dinesh Karthik at Kolkata Knight Riders, explosive batsman Robin Uthappa feels that the two may have different personalities but both have the characteristics required for a captain in a tournament like the Indian Premier League.
“Gauti and DK are very different personalities. DK is someone who thinks a lot, who likes a lot of information but at the same time he leaves enough room for instinct as a captain to be proactive and make decisions, which is wonderful,” said the 32-year-old.
“Gauti has been more of an instinctive captain. He has been naturally very proactive as a captain. So both are very different personalities but still have the most important characteristics required as a captain in this format.”
Uthappa top-scored with 48 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium here on Wednesday night to help the Knights defeat Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets.
“I have been striking the ball pretty well. I had an off-colour domestic season but I never felt I was not hitting the ball well, it was just about the runs. I am happy to be continuing in the same vein, making a difference to the team but I still think it is early days and I need to keep getting better.
“I hope to get better with the matches happening now,” said the right-hander, whose 36-ball innings was studded with six boundaries and two sixes.
Nitish Rana was named ‘Man of the Match’ for the second consecutive time for the Kolkata Knight Riders for his all-round performance and Uthappa lauded the middle-order batsmen for leading them to victory.
“Nitish has a very firm head on his shoulders, reads the game very well and is also very confident.
“If he can continue performing in the way he has been over the last couple of seasons, he gives himself a good chance to grow as a cricketer,” concluded Uthappa.
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