#SKFlashback: When Robin Uthappa knew he would win the match for India

It was the 5^th of September 2007. India and England were squaring off in the 6^th ODI of the 7-match series at the Oval. Opting to bat first, the hosts had put up a massive 316 for 6 on the board, on the back of a maiden hundred from Owais Shah and a debut fifty for Luke Wright.

Already trailing 2-3 in the series , this was a must-win match for the Indians if they had to keep the rubber alive.

Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly provided the side with the best beginning possible, putting 150 runs to take a lot of pressure off the middle-order. The latter was then dismissed for 53 and the former followed his partner soon to the pavilion, caught at cover by skipper Paul Collingwood for 94.

Gautam Gambhir and Yuvraj Singh ensured India didn’t lose its momentum with a 53-runs stand, but soon, both, along with skipper Rahul Dravid departed and at 234 for 5, MS Dhoni was joined in the middle by Robin Uthappa, with India still needing 83 runs in just over 9 overs.

The Karnataka right-hander began in promising fashion, smashing a couple of boundaries of Collingwood and along with Dhoni, started to bring the Men in Blue back into the match. There was a touch of luck as well to his knock, with a few edges going to the boundary.

The duo looked good to take India home, until going for a shot down the leg side, Dhoni was bowled off the bowling of Stuart Broad.

It was now up to Uthappa to take India home and in the company of the tail, he brought the equation down to 10 off the final over.

The over didn’t begin in the best fashion, as Zaheer Khan was run-out at the non-striker’s end of the second ball. India needed 8 runs off 4 balls at the stage, and it was then that Uthappa showed calmness beyond his years.

Off the third ball, he walked down, converted what looked like a yorker from Broad into a full-toss and paddled it past the fine fielder for four vital runs. The next ball, Broad kept it full again and Uthappa again took a few steps and smashed it past the mid-off fielder to take his side home.

He had finished unbeaten on a 34-ball 47 and India had kept the series alive in the most dramatic of fashions.

I had been sent to win it for India: Uthappa

In a later interview to ESPN Cricinfo, the right-hander said that he always knew within himself that he would win the match and added that he could rely on the tail.

"When Dhoni got out, I knew I would win it. I knew this was my game. I knew I had been sent here to win it. The trust in the Lord was enough. Fortunately, I had the tail with me and they've been batting brilliantly.

“Stuart [Broad] got the long-off up for the final ball. I'd just scooped him and knew he was trying to fool me. I knew he was bringing him forward to make me think it was going to be short. But even if he had bowled a short one, I knew the Lord would help me pull it away. I trusted myself and trusted Him. So I walked down, took it on the full and finished it,” he added.

That effort from him meant that India had kept the series alive and it was down to the 7^th and final ODI at Lord’s to help decide who would win the series.