Robin Uthappa recalls when MS Dhoni asked Kevin Pietersen to ‘please keep quiet’

Robin Uthappa, the veteran Indian batsman, reckoned that MS Dhoni’s wit is sharper than his wicketkeeping skills. The 35-year-old went down the memory lane when Dhoni, in a funny way, tried to get under former England skipper Kevin Pietersen’s skin. Dhoni’s antics were regarding a Test match between the two sides back in 2011.

During the game, Pietersen was given out caught behind with Dhoni rolling his arms over. On an immediate basis, the batter took the DRS and replays showed that he didn’t edge the ball. Hence, the on-field decision had to be reversed.

He’s very quick-witted: Robin Uthappa

“I’ll give you an example. MS said to Kevin Pietersen when he sledged him from the commentary box. MS told him ‘listen I’ve gotten your wicket so please keep quiet. So, I think that is proof enough for what he endorses and what he doesn’t.

“He’s very quick-witted. His wit, if not the same speed of his glove-work, it could be faster. MS’ wit is quick,” Uthappa was quoted as saying during an interaction with stand-up comedian Sorabh Pant on his YouTube channel ‘Wake Up with Sorabh’.

Uthappa also narrated an incident when India and Australia took part in a one-off T20I match in Mumbai back in 2007.

“In 2007 when we played a one-off T20 game against Australia, we were at it. MS would put me in charge of sledging some of the senior members of that Australia team like Ricky Ponting. So, in a one-day game, they would make me stand at silly point just to chew Ricky Ponting and all. It was great fun,” he stated.

2007 turned out to be a memorable year for Team India. In MS Dhoni’s maiden stint as Team India’s skipper, the Men in Blue lifted the inaugural T20 World Cup. Later, at the start of 2008, India also won a tri-nation series in Australia.

As far as Uthappa is concerned, his career hardly took off. In 46 ODIs and 13 T20Is, the right-hander only managed 1183 runs with seven fifties. In the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), he was a part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK), but he didn’t get to play a game.