Revision as of 10:43, 13 December 2020

A brief biography/ 2019

July 3, 2019: The Times of India

Ambati Rayudu announces retirement from all forms of cricket

NEW DELHI: Middle order batsman Ambati Rayudu announced his retirement from all forms of cricket on Wednesday. BCCI CEO Rahul Johri, speaking to the Times of India confirmed that Saba Karim, BCCI's General Manager for cricket operations has received an e-mail about the same from Rayudu.

Rayudu in his e-mail wrote: "I would like to bring to your kind notice that I have come to (the) decision to step away from the sport and retire from all forms and levels of the game. I would like to take this opportunity to thank the BCCI and all the state associations that I have represented which include Hyderabad, Baroda, Andhra and Vidharbha." The 33-year-old Rayudu represented India in 55 One day Internationals (ODIs), scoring 1694 runs at an average of 47.05.

The right-hander also featured in six Twenty20 Internationals for the country.

Rayudu was a hot topic of discussion in cricketing circles when the Indian team for the World Cup was announced.

After he was overlooked by the selection committee for the World Cup, the exclusion of Rayudu from the squad became a national debate.

Rayudu was then picked as a standby for the World Cup but he never made it to the squad, as Rishabh Pant replaced the injured Shikhar Dhawan and Mayank Agarwal was called up to replace the injured Vijay Shankar.

Soon after the World Cup squad was announced, Rayudu also made headlines for his sarcastic tweet about Vijay Shankar being picked ahead of him, with the Chairman of selectors saying Shankar has been picked for his three dimensional abilities.

Clearly, when he wasn't called up to play in the World Cup, even after two injuries, Rayudu decided he didn't want to play international cricket any more.

Lesser known facts

July 3, 2019: The Times of India

In 2004, India’s under-19 World Cup squad consisted of big names like Suresh Raina, Irfan Pathan, Dinesh Karthik, RP Singh, and Shikhar Dhawan, but it was Ambati Rayudu who was selected as the captain of the team.

Rayudu has been accused of losing his cool on the field. In 2005, he was involved in a brawl with ex-cricketer Shivlal Yadav’s son Arjun, who attacked Rayudu with a stump. Rayudu is infamous for getting into arguments with umpires over the years as well. 

In the under-19 match against England in 2002, Rayudu scored a massive 177 runs. 

Rayudu is also a part-time off-spinner and wicketkeeper. He played as a wicketkeeper for Chennai Super Kings in Dhoni's absence during the 2019 IPL season. 

The right-handed batsman was regarded as one of the biggest players in the ICL. He played for Hyderabad Heroes and ICL India XI. 

Unhappy with the decision of being excluded from the 2019 World Cup squad, Indian batsman Ambati Rayudu took to social media to taunt Chief selector MSK Prasad, who had stated that Vijay Shankar's 3-dimensional qualities made them pick him over Rayudu. To this Rayudu replied, "Just Ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the world cup." 

Rayudu didn't ever have the opportunity to make a test match debut. He has played 31 ODIs which include two centuries and five half-centuries and a score of 124. 

According to the BCCI, Ambati Rayudu has announced his retirement from all forms of cricket, including the IPL. Rayudu, who was already upset with the World Cup snub, was further disappointed when he was not picked even after injuries to Shikhar Dhawan and Vijay Shankar. 

In 2007, Rayudu was banned from Indian cricket by the BCCI for signing a contract with the Indian Cricket League (ICL). 

In 2013, in an ODI match against Zimbabwe, Rayudu scored an unbeaten 63 to help India chase down Zimbabwe’s 228 for 7.