"There's a sense of carefreeness there" - Robin Uthappa iterates on the mindset of batters ahead of Indian Masters T10

The inaugural edition of the Indian Masters T10 League will commence in the second week of June and will feature some of the legends who have graced the game in a quick-paced environment where there will be a galore of maximums and boundaries. The T10 league is likely to be conducted in venues that are not frequently used for international cricket.

Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa, one of the legends who will feature in the tournament, ennumerated on how the shortest format of the game brings about a different dimension to the sport and affects the mindset of the players, in an exclusive interview with Sportskeeda.

"Well, I think it will (revolutionize cricket in India). I do agree with the fact that the T10 version of the game, when I spoke to my colleague, he said, it opens up a different dimension. I really think when you get into the mindset of how you approach a game like this, as a cricketer you feel like you don't have much time. As a batter, you have to go in there and get things moving very quickly. You've got to assess conditions very, very quickly," he said.

In a way, the T10 format takes one back to their childhood, playing with freedom and looking to deal purely in sixes and fours. Uthappa believed just that, and spoke about how the batters must have a carefree attitude to reach peak performance in T10 cricket.

"I think it throws up a lot of different new aspects and a sense of carefreeness that comes along with, say, playing tennis ball cricket. There's a sense of carefreeness there which I can attach to as a cricketer that I can't attach to when I'm playing professional cricket. But I think the carefree attitude will have to be exercised here to get the most out of you for your team," he added.

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"To be honest, I'm excited to see Dhoni again" - Uthappa looking forward to watching his former skipper in action

Before the commencement of the Indian Masters T10, the Indian Premier League is right around the corner and Uthappa has a few names that he is looking forward to seeing in the two-month-long celebration of cricket. Among them is his former CSK skipper, MS Dhoni, along with exciting young talent Nishant Sindhu. Uthappa also mentioned Delhi Capitals' explosive opener Prithvi Shaw, who is due for a big season. He said he is also excited to watch Sunrisers Hyderabad pace sensation Umran Malik in action.

"One player I'm excited to see in this IPL? Man, there's so many. To be honest, I'm excited to see Dhoni again. He looks much stronger and fitter. He's got his hair up, he looks younger. I think outside of him, there's some really exciting youngsters I want to see. I like Nishant Sindhu - he's a good player. I want to see Prithvi Shaw do well - he's an exciting player, someone who is the future for me. These are three/four guys I'm looking to see. I want to see how Umran Malik turns up," he said.

From the international pool of talent, Uthappa believes that Harry Brook is a player who could emerge as one of the show-stoppers of the IPL in his debut season. However, Uthappa wonders whether Brook will be able to replicate his success from other leagues around the world in India.

"Among foreign players, maybe Harry Brook. He's been exceptional over the last year or so in all formats of the game for England and the leagues that he has played in around the world. How will he fare in India? We'll see," he added.

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"I think congratulations are in order" - Robin Uthappa lauds the successful Women's Premier League

Women's cricket ushered in a new era with the introduction of the Women's Premier League and Uthappa was impressed in the manner the BCCI and the organizers hosted the tournament. He revealed that he tuned in to watch the tournament from around the globe.

"I think it was incredible. I was following it from Qatar and wherever I was playing. So for me, I really enjoyed the Women's Premier League. I think congratulations are in order to the BCCI and the organizers of the WPL for running an incredible tournament and it's so nice to see it. They've done this on a large scale and the kind of exposure that the domestic women cricketers are getting is phenomenal," he said.

The Indian Masters T10 will consist of 19 matches and will feature six teams battling it out in a T10 contest for the title.