One man's trash is another man's treasure

Chennai Super Kings' fall from grace in the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League was symptomatic of mankind's plight in a trash can of a year where everything that could go wrong went wrong. For an absolute powerhouse that had featured in eight finals and won the trophy thrice, CSK huffed and puffed to finish at a shambolic seventh, failing to make it beyond the league phase for the first time ever in an IPL season. Quizzed on what instigated the blip on their radar, head coach Stephen Fleming put a finger on the lack of Indian batsmen at the top. 

Suresh Raina withdrawing at the eleventh hour punched a giant-sized hole bang in the middle of the batting order, a perforation so huge that it wasn't to be sealed by overseas tapes named Faf du Plessis or Shane Watson. The opening duo did the trapeze earlier with the awareness that Raina's safety net would come to the rescue if required. However, devoid of the buffer, their cuts and pulls left the bat with a hint of alarm. The snowball effect had Ambati Rayudu at his wits' end too, unsure of whether his role is to up the ante at one drop or play the sheet anchor to mask the leisurely strike rates of Kedar Jadhav and MS Dhoni. 

"Where we were in trouble is that without our Indian batters, we had to fill those gaps with international players," reflected Fleming. "Obviously you'd like to play all your international players, but when you're having to fill a gap at the top of the order, it puts a squeeze somewhere else. We had to fill the slots that were usually taken by Indian players at the top and just rejig our side."

Although youth is to CSK what democracy is to North Korea, Sam Curran and Ruturaj Gaikwad emerged as twinkling silver linings in their otherwise glum cloud. Curran holds a penchant for pyrotechnics, ask India, and CSK's punt to unleash him as a floater worked like a charm. Whereas Gaikwad, having missed the lion's share of action after taking longer than usual to defeat the virus, proved his mettle towards the fag end of the tournament with his side having nothing but pride to fight for. Cool as a cucumber at the crease with all the shots in the book, the young gun sparked three fifties on the trot to make the opening slot his own. But it takes two to tango and CSK's latest acquisition of Robin Uthappa through a trade-off with fellow bottom-dwellers Rajasthan Royals is food for the strategist's soul within each of us. 

So what did CSK, an Oldies' Club which has just struck an unprecedented nadir, see in another senior citizen who is well past his prime? Uthappa is 35, and there's only one way that number is being pulled. Neither does he have age on his side, nor does he have the sheer weight of runs behind him to influence this perplexing deal that has led to CSK copping an earful from their beloved yellow army. The answer to this almighty 'why' has a lot to do with how previous franchises have squandered a veteran of his calibre and class. It called for a trained eye to discern the discrepancy in the man-management, and CSK's think tank is arguably the best in the business.

Uthappa has always been in a constant state of flux, moving up and down the order for the sake of squad balance. He has forever been the sacrificial lamb, batting in and around big names as an able ally, bidding goodbyes to his personal freedom and liberty for the greater good. He has opened the innings on 77 occasions while plying his trade at number three 50 times. He's also been relegated to four and five, for as many as 34 and 15 trips respectively. However, the bulk of his runs have arrived in comfort zones at the top, with opening stints reaping an aggregate of 2057 at a tick under 28. It is against the new ball where he's expressed himself loud and clear, not when sandwiched in the mayhem of the middle-order where scoring avenues shrink to zilch with five men on the fence. Mind you, those aren't fresh legs happy to indulge in the daredevilry of risk-laden singles, let alone converting ones into twos. RR erred on the human resource front by not granting him a fair crack at his refuge to be left rueing an Uthappa who blew more cold than hot. 

Versatility is a virtue that not each individual can imbibe. Not everyone can be a Curran, plucked off the rack and thrown into the heat of the battle as per the whims and fancies of the management. Some need the breathing space to fully understand the fine nuances that come along with batting at a certain position. Their technique and temperament are more accustomed to thriving where they belong. A hallmark of Dhoni's leadership is that he refrains from unnecessary chopping and changing and backs his personnel to the hilt irrespective of the inevitable slumps in form. Given Shane Watson hung his boots after their nightmare of a campaign and Murali Vijay no longer fits the bill, CSK's vacancy for an Indian pro at the helm and Uthappa's flair seems to be a match made in heaven. 

The wealth of experience Uthappa brings to the table will lend his hypothetical batting partner, Gaikwad, a sounding board born and brought up on subcontinental tracks. Blessed with the gift of timing, Uthappa works angles with geometric precision and can send the most feral of attacks on a leather hunt, albeit more so with the field restrictions in place. If handed over the license to go for the kill and a soft corner in selection henceforth ala Virender Sehwag or Colin Munro, he can for sure render a rocket launch to CSK inside the PowerPlay, where they had the second slowest run-rate (7.13) in IPL 2020. His flourish, in turn, takes the burden off Faf du Plessis' chest, who then enjoys ample time for a sighter before teeing off. He'll also feel a sense of familiarity walking in at one down as 41 out of his 50 knocks for South Africa in T20 cricket have been there itself. 

CSK trodding water within the circle owing to the absence of a rock-solid pillar that was Raina ought to be a recipe for disaster. They conceded the fewest wickets in this phase (22), but only scored faster than RCB (6.94). Such a conservative approach created a powder keg in chases as the asking rate quadrupled and yet the batsmen in charge shied away from taking risks. In four of the five chases, they came a cropper, the asking rates at the onset of the 16th over read 17.20, 16.20, 17.20 and 14.80 - a bridge too far for their finishers who goaded the game deep at their own peril. Uthappa and Gaikwad clicking in unison will lay the bricks of pursuit nice and early to ensure the asking rates do not enter the double-digit territory at the death. 

Even though RR releasing Uthappa was a manoeuvre along expected lines, CSK welcoming him onboard via an all-cash purchase is simply a bolt from the blue. The swashbuckling right-hander went through the paces most-recently in the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, where his blitzkrieg worth a 54-ball 91 romped Kerala home in the quest of 213 against Delhi last week. Uthappa will aim to serve many purposes if and when he faces the first ball on behalf of CSK. He'll look forward to repaying the faith of his former India captain and turning around the fortunes of a once-formidable unit in his tutelage. By doing so, he'll tick off the third by default. Save the sinking ship of his career.

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