Former India batter Robin Uthappa is set to turn out for the Dubai Capitals in the inaugural ILT20 in UAE starting in January next year. Uthappa retired from international and IPL cricket in September of this year.
Uthappa is a direct signing by Capitals, who are one of the six franchises in ILT20, which is sanctioned by the Emirates Cricket Board.
The veteran cricketer said he had wanted to play in overseas T20 leagues even as an active player in Indian domestic cricket and the IPL, but BCCI rules hadn't allowed him to do so.
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Hence the retirement from international and Indian cricket will allow Uthappa to fulfill that desire now as he eyes stints in other tournaments like The Hundred, the Caribbean Premier League, and the Big Bash League in the future.
"It is something I wanted to do [play in overseas T20 leagues]. Now that I have retired it gives me the opportunity. I consider myself a student of the game. So I will only be enriching my own knowledge and experience and information about the game when I go and play in different conditions in the world. Tomorrow if I want to be a coach, I should have some kind of stand when I am having a conversation with the lads. I believe all these experiences will add value to that,” Uthappa told ESPNCricinfo.
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“I am hoping I will [now] to be able to go to different parts of the world and play the leagues, not just Dubai, even outside the subcontinent - hopefully South Africa next year, England (The Hundred), Australia (BBL) and the Caribbean (CPL). It gives me the access to improve myself, even try to grow my horizons as a human being as well, experience different cultures, places and people,” he added.
Uthappa, who played 46 ODIs and 13 T20Is in an international career that stretched from 2006 to 2015, also played 205 IPL games, turning out for six different franchises over 15 seasons.
The BCCI has not permitted active Indian players to take part in franchise leagues other than the IPL, which had become an issue of debate after India's semi-final loss at the T20 World Cup in Australia.
(ESPNCricinfo inputs)
