16 months on from lone ODI, Krishnappa Gowtham leaves India opportunities to fate

India’s tour of Sri Lanka in July 2021 was one of a kind. It was the first time India were parallelly playing two series. The contingent down south was swept with Covid-19 cases. And several players received the coveted cap, as a result.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) had sent a second-string side to the island nation, as Virat Kohli and Co. were gearing up for a Test series in England. Six cricketers debuted in T20Is, four in ODIs, with two of them being common.

The two players who were introduced in just the third and final ODI were all-rounder Krishnappa Gowtham and leg spinner Rahul Chahar. While Chahar had already made his T20I debut in 2019, it was Gowtham’s first taste of the India colours.

Representing the national side is supposed to be the start of a new chapter. But as it turned out, the Colombo outings were one-off footnotes for these greenhorns. Except for opener Ruturaj Gaikwad and mystery spinner Varun Chakaravarthy, none of the debutants got an opportunity post that tour. Rahul Chahar, though, played one game at the T20 World Cup last year.

The exultation before the sojourn must have been as hard-hitting as the fear of belonging thereafter. 16 months since that capricious tour, Krishnappa Gowtham has learnt the hard way of not getting affected by things that are not in his control.

“Whatever happens, you have to just keep playing and keep doing what you know best. India will happen, it might not happen - it’s not in my control. I’ll just do my controllables and I’ll just keep doing things I am good at,” he said in an exclusive chat with Sportskeeda on the sidelines of Karnataka’s Vijay Hazare Trophy encounter against Delhi.

Gowtham announced himself to the world in IPL 2018, when he smashed an unbeaten 33 off 11 balls to guide the Rajasthan Royals (RR) to a last-gasp victory over the Mumbai Indians (MI). It was his best season as he played all 15 matches for the franchise, aggregating 126 runs and scalping 11 wickets with his off spin.

But he endured two tepid years after that. But his big-hitting was so beautifully showcased that the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) paid a whopping 9.25 crore to sign him at the IPL 2021 auction. Gowtham was then the most expensive uncapped player in the history of the league.

But he again hit a roadblock that would have belied even soothsayers. MS Dhoni didn’t deploy him for even a single game, before the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) snaffled him up for 90 lakhs at the mega auction this year.

The BCCI corridors are now echoing with shouts for a bowler who can also tonk lower down the order. Krishnappa Gowtham has just turned 34. He is very much aware of the vacancy. But he doesn’t want to be overburdened by expectations.

“If there is an opportunity, I might as well give everything I have. If it’s on the cards, it happens. If it doesn’t happen also, I will still have to keep doing what I love doing,” he added.

He picked up the important wicket of Delhi skipper Nitish Rana as Karnataka won their fourth consecutive match in Elite Group B.

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How has Krishnappa Gowtham fared in recent T20s?

Krishnappa Gowtham played four matches for LSG in IPL 2022 [Credits: LSG]

While there isn’t much batting exploits to write home about, Krishnappa Gowtham has been quietly chipping away with the ball throughout the past two white-ball seasons.

In the last two editions of the Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 Trophy, the Karnataka all-rounder has completed his quota of four overs in almost all matches. He has picked up 16 wickets in the process. But his economy rate of 5.38 has been the real deal.

Gowtham has been a reliable bowler through the middle overs, in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy as well. He has scalped four wickets in as many games at an impressive economy of 4.03. The lower-order batter also struck an unbeaten 18-ball 30 against Vidarbha last Sunday.

His IPL numbers, though, don’t paint a similar picture. He got to play just four matches for LSG this season, taking five wickets at 8.25. But the fact that they retained him is perhaps a sign of better things to come.

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