Ambati Rayudu
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Ambati Thirupathi Rayudu (born 23 September 1985) is a former Indian international
cricketer Cricket is a Bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball game played between two Sports team, teams of eleven players on a cricket field, field, at the centre of which is a cricket pitch, pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two Bail (cr ...
, commentator and politician. He played 61 limited overs matches for the
India national cricket team The India men's national cricket team, also known as Men in Blue, represents India in international cricket. It is governed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India and is a full member nation of the International Cricket Council with ...
between 2013 and 2019. He won the IPL trophy a record six times, being the only player other than
Rohit Sharma Rohit Sharma (born 30 April 1987) is an Indian Cricket, international cricketer and the Captain (cricket), captain of the India national cricket team, national team in One Day International, ODIs. He is also a former captain in Tests and T20 ...
to achieve this feat. He played for
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
in domestic cricket,
Mumbai Indians The Mumbai Indians are a professional Twenty20, Twenty20 cricket team based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Indians were founded in 2008 and are owned by India's largest Conglomerate (company), co ...
and
Chennai Super Kings The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...
in the
Indian Premier League The Indian Premier League (IPL) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in India, organised by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Founded in 2007, it features ten city-based Professional sports league organization, fr ...
(IPL). He was a part of the Indian squad which won the
2018 Asia Cup The 2018 Asia Cup (also known as Unimoni Asia Cup for sponsorship reasons) was a One-Day International (ODI) cricket tournament that was held in the United Arab Emirates in September 2018. It was the 14th edition of the Asia Cup and the third t ...
. He is a right-handed middle-order
batsman In cricket, batting is the act or skill of hitting the cricket ball, ball with a cricket bat, bat to score runs (cricket), runs and prevent the dismissal (cricket), loss of one's wicket. Any player who is currently batting is, since Septembe ...
, who occasionally keeps wicket and bowls right-arm
off break Off spin is a type of spin bowling in cricket. A bowler who uses this technique is called an off spinner. Off spinners bowl with their right-arm and a finger spin action. Their normal delivery is called an off break, which spins from left to ...
s. Rayudu began his first-class career with
Hyderabad Hyderabad is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part of Southern India. With an average altitude of , much ...
in 2002 at the age of 16 and, by the following year, was playing for India A. He captained the India Under-19 team at the 2004 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup and was expected to break into the senior team. Disputes with players and state association, followed by signing up with the "rebel"
Indian Cricket League The Indian Cricket League (ICL) was a short-lived cricket league that ran from 2007 to 2009. It was sponsored by Zee Entertainment Enterprises, a media company. The ICL had two seasons, featuring four international teams and nine domestic teams ...
, led to him being ignored for national team selection. He returned to domestic cricket in 2009 by acceptin
BCCI's amnesty offer
and terminating his ICL contract. After strong performances for Baroda in domestic cricket and Mumbai Indians in the IPL, he was named in the Indian squad for the first time in 2012. He eventually made his international debut in July 2013, in an ODI against Zimbabwe. After being dropped from Indian squad for the 2019 ICC World Cup, Rayudu got an offer from Iceland cricket board to join Iceland team which he declined. On 2 July 2019, he announced his retirement from all forms of international cricket. On 28 May 2023, he announced his retirement from the IPL. On 29 May 2023, Rayudu announced his retirement from all forms of Indian cricket. Shortly after, in June 2023, Rayudu was added to the roster for the Texas Super Kings in the inaugural season of
Major League Cricket Major League Cricket (MLC) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in the United States organized by American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) and sanctioned by USA Cricket. Founded in 2023, the league operates as a single entity consisting of ...
. It was his first appearance in a franchise league outside of India. In 2023, he announced his foray into politics in Andhra Pradesh. On 28 December 2023, he joined
YSR Congress Party The Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (, YSRCP or YCP), often shortened to simply the YSR Congress Party, is an Indian Regionalism (politics), regional political party based in the state of Andhra Pradesh. The party was initially registere ...
, but left on 6 January 2024, in a record 9 days. On 10 January 2024, he joined the
Jana Sena Party The Jana Sena Party (; JSP) is an Indian political party active in the states of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. Founded by Pawan Kalyan on 14 March 2014, it is currently the second largest party in the Andhra Pradesh Legislative Assembly and a pa ...
, stating that the party's ideologies match his more than YSRCP's.


Early life

Rayudu was born on 23 September 1985 in upper middle class family. in
Guntur Guntur (), natively spelt as Gunturu, is a city in the States and union territories of India, Indian state of Andhra Pradesh and the administrative headquarters of Guntur district. The city is part of the Andhra Pradesh Capital Region and is lo ...
,
Andhra Pradesh Andhra Pradesh (ISO 15919, ISO: , , AP) is a States and union territories of India, state on the East Coast of India, east coast of southern India. It is the List of states and union territories of India by area, seventh-largest state and th ...
,
India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...
. His father Sambasiva Rao worked at the archives department. Rayudu has said in an interview that his father was his inspiration to take up cricket and put him into a coaching camp when he was in third grade. Rayudu's father took him to the cricket academy of former Hyderabad cricketer Vijay Paul in 1992. Paul recalls, "Rayudu’s father used to ferry him around on his scooter to the cricket camps and various matches." According to Abdul Azeem, “Rao used to stand about 50 meters away and watch Rayudu practice day-in and day-out."


Career


Early promise

Rayudu began his career playing for Hyderabad youth teams in the late-90s, playing at the Under-16 and Under-19 levels. He appeared for India Under-15s at the ACC Under-15 Trophy in 2000, finishing as the leading run-scorer of the tournament and winning man of the match in the final against Pakistan. Prolific run-scoring at age group levels saw him getting elevated to the senior team squad of Hyderabad. He made his first-class debut for Hyderabad in January 2002, at the age of 16, during the 2001–02 Ranji Trophy. Batting at 4, he scored 33 in that match, his only first-class appearance of the season. Later that year, he was made captain of India Under-17s and also made appearances for India Under-19s. On India Under-19 tour of England, his maiden Under-19 assignment, Rayudu batted as an opener and made a total of 291 runs from 3 innings and finished as the highest run-getter of the series which India swept 3–0. His best efforts of the series came in the third ODI in which he scored a 169-ball 177 to single-handedly take his team to the target of 304 from a precarious position of 137 for 6. Rayudu appeared in all matches for Hyderabad in the 2002–03 Ranji Trophy and amassed a total of 698 runs at an average of 69.80 to finish third on the leading run-scorers list. During the tournament, playing only his third Ranji game, Rayudu scored 210 and 159
not out In cricket, a batsman is not out if they come out to bat in an innings and have not been dismissed by the end of an innings. The batsman is also ''not out'' while their innings is still in progress. Occurrence At least one batter is not out at ...
against Andhra in the same match and "pressed his claims for an India cap". He became the youngest player in the history of Ranji Trophy to score a double century and a century in the same match. In 2003, Rayudu played extensively for India A on its West Indies and England tours. He averaged 87 on the England tour following which experts opined that he is "sure to play for India in the near future". ''
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'' wrote about the 17-year-old: "Touted as the next big hope for Indian middle-order batting, Rayudu has had the critics gushing about his scintillating strokeplay and his composure under pressure." However he had a disappointing stint with India Seniors at the Challenger Trophy in September 2003, where his perceived weakness against the short ball was exploited. He then failed to make an impression in the Emerging Players Tournament after which he played four matches in the following Ranji season with an average of over 54. He captained India Under-19s to the title at the Asia Under-19 tournament, with an unbeaten fifty in the final. Rayudu captained the Indian team at the 2004 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup in Bangladesh where India finished as semifinalists. He averaged 24.83 with the bat at the tournament and was banned for the semifinal against Pakistan for breaching the ICC Code of Conduct in the previous match. He struck an unbeaten century for India A against Kenya at Nairobi later that year. He averaged just 11.93 from 7 matches in the
2004–05 Ranji Trophy The 2004–05 Ranji Trophy was the 71st season of the Ranji Trophy The Ranji Trophy is a premier domestic first-class cricket championship played in India and organized annually by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). The teams ...
, but struck 3 fifties in 4 matches in the Ranji One-Day Trophy.


Decline, ICL and return

Due to differences with the then Hyderabad coach Rajesh Yadav, Rayudu switched to
Andhra Andhra Pradesh (ISO: , , AP) is a state on the east coast of southern India. It is the seventh-largest state and the tenth-most populous in the country. Telugu is the most widely spoken language in the state, as well as its official lang ...
for the 2005–06 season. He averaged 35 in the Ranji Trophy that season and made headlines when he was attacked by Hyderabad player Arjun Yadav with stumps after Yadav was dismissed during the Andhra-Hyderabad match. Rayudu returned to Hyderabad the following season after Vivek Jaisimha took over as the team's coach. Rayudu could play only three Ranji matches that season as he suffered a knee injury that kept him out of action. In one of the three matches he scored 62 and 110 not out, against Rajasthan. Upon returning from injury, he averaged 21 in the 2006–07 Ranji One-Day Trophy. Midway through 2007, the "rebel"
Indian Cricket League The Indian Cricket League (ICL) was a short-lived cricket league that ran from 2007 to 2009. It was sponsored by Zee Entertainment Enterprises, a media company. The ICL had two seasons, featuring four international teams and nine domestic teams ...
(ICL) was formed. The
Board of Control for Cricket in India The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) is the principal national governing body of the sport of cricket in India. Its headquarters are situated at the Cricket Centre in Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai. BCCI is the wealthiest governing body ...
(BCCI), which opposed the league, declared that players and officials affiliating with the ICL will be banned from Indian domestic cricket. In August 2007, it was reported that Rayudu and six other players from Hyderabad had already signed up for the ICL. In an interview in November 2007, Rayudu backed his decision to play in the ICL by remarking, "I didn't want to play ten years of domestic cricket and feel that I have not played any international-quality opposition." He added that it was a chance "to play against quality opposition for three years and it will also be telecast on TV. People will hopefully see me perform. And I want to perform for my own personal satisfaction." He played for Hyderabad Heroes and ICL India in the ICL from 2007 to 2008. In 2009, the BCCI granted amnesty to 79 Indian players in the ICL, including Rayudu, allowing them to come back to Indian domestic cricket. Rayudu returned to play for Hyderabad and said he wanted to "concentrate on domestic cricket and push for the IPL." Rayudu averaged 43 from 7 matches in the 2009–10 Ranji Trophy, and 50 from 5 matches in the 2009–10 Vijay Hazare Trophy. In early 2010, he was signed up by the
Mumbai Indians The Mumbai Indians are a professional Twenty20, Twenty20 cricket team based in Mumbai, Maharashtra, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The Indians were founded in 2008 and are owned by India's largest Conglomerate (company), co ...
ahead of the 2010 Indian Premier League. Before the 2010–11 season, Rayudu decided to play for
Baroda Vadodara (), also known as Baroda, is a city situated on the banks of the Vishwamitri River in the Indian state of Gujarat. It serves as the administrative headquarters of the Vadodara district. The city is named for its abundance of banyan ...
after Hyderabad got relegated to the Plate Division of Ranji Trophy, with Hyderabad coach Venkatapathy Raju saying "it was done in bad taste". At the Ranji Trophy that season, Rayudu finished as Baroda's leading run-getter with 566 runs in 9 matches at an average of 56.60 including an unbeaten double hundred and three half-centuries, while the team finished runners-up. At the 2011–12 Ranji Trophy, he averaged 48.75 with two centuries. He was then recalled to the India A squad on its New Zealand tour and scored 105 and 26 not out against New Zealand A at Lincoln. He was also included in the 30 probables for the
2012 ICC World Twenty20 The 2012 ICC World Twenty20 was the fourth edition of the Men's T20 World Cup, formerly known as the ICC World Twenty20, an international Twenty20 International, Twenty20 cricket tournament that took place in Sri Lanka from 18 September to 7 O ...
but failed to make it to the final 15-man squad.


Indian team

In December 2012, the newly formed selection panel, chaired by
Sandeep Patil Sandeep Patil ( ; born 18 August 1956) is an Indian former cricketer, India national age-group cricket manager and former Kenya national team coach, who guided the underdogs to the semi-finals of the 2003 World Cup. He was a hard-hitting mi ...
who was also previously associated with the ICL, picked Rayudu as the replacement player for the injured Manoj Tiwary for the T20I series against England. However, Rayudu did not feature in the playing eleven in either of the two matches. In the 2012–13 Ranji Trophy season, Rayudu scored 666 runs at an average of 60.54 with a hundred and seven fifties. He played for Rest of India in the 2013 Irani Cup against Mumbai and scored 51 and 156*. He was the top-scorer in the 2012–13 Deodhar Trophy final where his innings of 78* helped West Zone chase down the target of 290 against North Zone. During the West Indies tri-series in July 2013, Rayudu was named the replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni who was ruled out of the series due to an injury, but did not appear in any of the matches. Rayudu was then selected in a second string Indian squad for the tour of Zimbabwe later that month. He made his international debut in the first ODI of the series, on 24 July 2013, and was crucial in setting up an Indian win. He made 63* and in partnership with his captain,
Virat Kohli Virat Kohli (born 5 November 1988) is an Indian Cricket, international cricketer who plays One Day International, ODI cricket for the India national cricket team, national team and is a former Captain (cricket), captain in all formats. He is a ...
, who made a century, helped India win. He became the 12th Indian batsman to score a half-century on ODI debut. Rayudu continued to be a part of India's ODI squads as a reserve batsman in the home series against Australia in October 2013, against West Indies in November 2013, as well as on tours to South Africa in December 2013 and
New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...
in January 2014, making only two appearances in the playing eleven across the four series. He played in all matches of 2014 Asia Cup and scored 58 against Pakistan. He struggled during the three-match ODI tour of Bangladesh, making two single-digit scores. Rayudu was picked in the ODI and T20I squads for the tour of England in July 2014. He played in the third ODI at Nottingham where he picked his maiden ODI wicket, that of England captain
Alastair Cook Sir Alastair Nathan Cook (born 25 December 1984) is an English former cricketer and former captain (cricket), captain of the England Test Cricket, Test and One-Day International, ODI teams. He is considered one of the greatest opening batsmen ...
, and top-scored with 64 not out to help India register a six-wicket win. He followed it with a 53 in the fifth ODI at Leeds. He averaged 28.50 in the home ODI series against West Indies in October 2014. Rayudu scored his maiden ODI century in the following series against Sri Lanka, hitting an unbeaten 121 in the second ODI at Ahmedabad and guiding India to the target of 275. During the match, he shared 100-plus partnerships with both Shikhar Dhawan and Kohli and won his first man of the match award for the knock. In the fifth ODI at Ranchi, he made 59 to set up another successful run-chase and a 5–0 whitewash of Sri Lanka. Rayudu averaged 19.33 in the tri-series against Australia and England and was selected in India's 15-member squad for the
2015 Cricket World Cup The 2015 ICC Cricket World Cup was the 11th Cricket World Cup, a quadrennial One Day International (ODI) cricket tournament contested by men's national teams and organised by the International Cricket Council (ICC). It was jointly hosted by Aust ...
which reached the semifinal, but did not appear in any of the matches in the tournament. He played two ODIs on the Bangladesh tour in June 2015 and averaged 22. In the subsequent tour of Zimbabwe, Rayudu scored an unbeaten 124 in the first ODI at Harare and won the man of the match award. He scored 41 in the next match before suffering an injury that ruled him out of the tour. India went on to sweep the series 3–0 and Rayudu was adjudged man of the series. In the 2022 IPL Rayudu was bought by the
Chennai Super Kings The Chennai Super Kings, also known as CSK, are a professional Twenty20 cricket team based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, that competes in the Indian Premier League (IPL). The team was one of the eight debut franchises when the league was establ ...
for ₹6.75 crores again after a four-year stint with them. On 28 May 2023, prior to the 2023 IPL final, Rayudu announced that it would be his final IPL match. However, on 29 May 2023, Rayudu announced his retirement from all forms of Indian cricket.


Other Leagues

In 2023, shortly after announcing his retirement from Indian cricket, he joined former teammates, Devon Conway and
Mitchell Santner Mitchell Josef Santner (born 5 February 1992) is a New Zealand international cricketer and current captain of New Zealand Cricket team in limited overs cricket. Domestically, he plays for Northern Districts cricket team. He is a bowling all-rou ...
, and coach,
Stephen Fleming Stephen Paul Fleming (born 1 April 1973) is a cricket coach and former captain of the New Zealand national cricket team. He was a left-handed Batting order (cricket), opening batter and an occasional right arm slow medium bowler. He is New Zea ...
for Rayudu's debut in a league outside of India. He is listed as the wicket keeper batsman on the Texas Super Kings squad in one of the 9 available overseas player slots for the inaugural season of
Major League Cricket Major League Cricket (MLC) is a professional Twenty20 (T20) cricket league in the United States organized by American Cricket Enterprises (ACE) and sanctioned by USA Cricket. Founded in 2023, the league operates as a single entity consisting of ...
. In August 2023, he was signed by St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots as a marquee player ahead of the 2023 season of the
Caribbean Premier League The Caribbean Premier League (abbreviated to CPL or CPLT20) is an annual Twenty20 cricket tournament held in the Caribbean. It was founded by Cricket West Indies in 2013 to replace the Caribbean Twenty20 as the premier Twenty20 competition in ...
. He became the second Indian to feature in the CPL, after Pravin Tambe.


Personal life

Rayudu married Chennupalli Vidya, a college friend, on 14 February 2009. They have two children.


Controversies

Rayudu has been involved in confrontations with players and umpires throughout his career. In 2005, while playing for Andhra in the Ranji Trophy, he was involved in a scuffle with Hyderabad player Arjun Yadav, in which he was attacked by Yadav with a stump. During the 2012 IPL, Rayudu was fined 100% of his match fee for using obscene and abusive language against opposition player
Harshal Patel Harshal Patel (born 23 November 1990) is an Indian cricketer who has played for the country's national team in Twenty20 internationals (T20I). A right-arm medium pace bowler who bats right-handed, Patel made his T20I debut against New Zealand ...
after a match. In 2014, he was seen hurling expletives at the umpire after his dismissal during a match of India A's tour of Australia. During a 2016 IPL match, he was involved in an on-field spat with Mumbai Indians teammate
Harbhajan Singh Harbhajan Singh (born 3 July 1980), also known by his nickname Bhajji, is a former Indian cricketer. He later became a politics, politician, serving as a Member of Parliament, Rajya Sabha, Member of Parliament in Rajya Sabha. He is also a fil ...
. In 2018, the BCCI banned Rayudu for two matches after his heated confrontation with the umpires during a Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy match against Karnataka. In September 2017, a video surfaced on social media showing Rayudu getting into a heated argument, manhandling and punching a senior citizen. In April 2019, Rayudu tweeted "Just Ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the world cup" after the selectors dropped him from the World Cup squad in favour of Vijay Shankar, whom the chairman of selection committee had called a "three dimensional cricketer".


References


External links

*
Ambati Rayudu
s profile page on Wisden {{DEFAULTSORT:Rayudu, Ambati Indian cricketers India One Day International cricketers India Twenty20 International cricketers 21st-century Indian sportsmen Andhra cricketers Hyderabad cricketers Telugu cricketers South Zone cricketers Mumbai Indians cricketers ICL India XI cricketers Hyderabad Heroes cricketers Baroda cricketers West Zone cricketers India Red cricketers India Green cricketers Cricketers from Guntur Chennai Super Kings cricketers 1985 births Living people Cricketers at the 2015 Cricket World Cup Wicket-keepers Cricketers from Andhra Pradesh