The recent three-match New Zealand series was a massive reality check for the Indian cricket team. They suffered a 3-0 whitewash in a dismal display of cricket. Their horror performance also saw the Indian team lose their unbeaten 12-year streak at home in the longest format. India also suffered their first-ever home series whitewash (3 or more Tests).

No doubt the results have hurt, and now former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) star Robin Uthappa has expressed his frustration at some extremely specific.

Prior to the India series, CSK allowed one of their franchise players and NZ star Rachin Ravindra to practice at their academy. This move did not sit well with Uthappa, and he criticised the decision openly.

How did CSK’s decision cost India?

Notably, Rachin Ravindra dedicated considerable effort at the CSK academy before the recent Test series. He practiced on both red-soil and black-soil pitches to prepare himself for the challenging series ahead.

Ravindra emerged as one of the key players for the Blackcaps during their landmark Test series win in India, finishing as the top Kiwi batter with 256 runs.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Uthappa said,

“Rachin Ravindra came here and practiced at the CSK Academy. CSK is a beautiful franchise that will always look after its franchise players but a line has to be drawn where the interest of the country comes ahead of your franchise players, especially when he is a foreign player and comes and plays against our country.”

“I am not surprised that CSK always go over and above for their players but somewhere in that kindness, maybe I am not saying the right thing, I absolutely love CSK, but when it comes to the country, there should be a line somewhere where we do not cross that line,” he added.