Suresh Raina believes Robin Uthappa brilliant display in the ongoing Indian Premier League should merit a place in the Indian limited-overs squad.
Uthappa has raked up 489 runs from 12 matches to be the second highest run-getter so far, that includes a record breaking run of seven 40-plus scores on the trot.
He has been key to Kolkata Knight Riders’ winning run in five consecutive matches notching five fifties. The 29-year-old Uthappa opened for India during their World Twenty20 triumph in 2007 but since that high he has struggled to find a regular spot in the national team.
He last played a one-day international six years ago while his last Twenty20 International was against South Africa in 2012.
Raina was hugely impressed with Uthappa’s 67 off 39 balls against Chennai Super Kings that set up Kolkata’s eight-wicket win on Tuesday and he feels the dashing opener should be in India’s squad for the upcoming tour of England.
The Chennai star said: “He is batting really well. I hope he continues like that and hopefully he gets a chance to play for India as well.
“He is in good form right now and most importantly there are some very important series coming up after the IPL and he is in good nick.
“He hasn’t played for some time for India, and I wish him all the best and hope he makes it to the Indian team and performs well for India too,” Raina told iplt20.com.
Uthappa has forged a fruitful alliance with captain Gautam Gambhir and the opening duo have provided a fluent start in the last six games for Kolkata with two hundred and three fifty partnerships.
Uthappa feels they complement each other well, saying: “Gautam and I understand each other very well.
“We play to our plan and we run very well in between the wickets. We egg each other on. We don’t really think about pressure. We just think of going out there and doing our job.”
Uthappa will be hoping to extend his superb run when Kolkata take on Royal Challengers Bangalore on Thursday when a victory will seal the Knight Riders' a playoffs place while a defeat will end Bangalore’s hopes.
