"I was completely into depression during my first season with RCB" - Robin Uthappa 

Robin Uthappa is an Indian Premier League (IPL) veteran who has been a part of the tournament right from the inaugural season and represented a total of six franchises.

Uthappa recently revealed that he was not in a good headspace when he was transferred from Mumbai Indians (MI) to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ahead of the second season of the cash-rich league. He disclosed that he was depressed during the 2009 edition and that it impacted his on-field performances as well.

Robin Uthappa revealed that he wasn't ready to sign the transfer papers but had to do it after someone from MI informed him that he wouldn't get to play in the XI if he didn't. Speaking on Ravichandran Ashwin's YouTube channel, he explained:

"I was going through something in my personal life and I was completely into depression during my first season with RCB. I didn't play well even for one game that season. The only game in which I did well was when I was dropped and picked again. I played thinking that I really needed to do something in this match. Someone from MI had told me that if I didn't sign the transfer papers, I'd not get to play in the XI for MI."

"I feel like I played during the best phase of RCB. It was a phase in IPL where the first year was a lot of fun because everyone was finding ground. I think from the second year onwards, it became really big. So, I was along with Zaheer Khan and Manish Pandey. I was one of the first people to be transferred in IPL. For me, it became extremely difficult because my loyalties were completely laid out with MI at that point. It happened a month before the IPL and I refused to sign the transfer papers."

The right-handed batter managed 175 runs from 15 matches at an ordinary strike rate of 102.94 in his first season with RCB. However, he made amends in the subsequent edition by scoring 374 runs.

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"I had a great run with KKR until Gautam Gambhir was there" - Robin Uthappa

Robin Uthappa, who was with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) for six seasons, mentioned that he had a great time playing for the franchise when Gautam Gambhir was made captain. He reckoned that there was a communication gap following Gambhir's departure. Robin Uthappa added:

"I had a great run with KKR until Gautam Gambhir was there. It was exceptional for me because I settled into the side and became a core member of the group. When the transition happened, communication was not the best. At that point, there were a lot of communication gaps. There was a lot of lack of transparency in what was happening. It took me a hit and in hindsight, I am glad it did, to be where I am today."

The seasoned campaigner is currently plying trade for Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 15th edition of the tournament. While the franchise had released him ahead of the IPL 2022 auction, they re-signed him at the event at his base price of ₹2 crores.