HYDERABAD: "(Ambati) Rayudu has taken his chance with both hands. We need to back him till the World Cup." This statement was reportedly made by Virat Kohli late last year. The skipper had repeatedly praised the middle-order bat for his prowess at the much-debated number four slot. Few would have thought what was to follow. Fast forward to the ongoing quadrennial extravaganza, the player shocked everyone by announcing retirement from the sport.
He communicated his decision to the BCCI via an email addressed to acting secretary Amitabh Choudhary, general manager (cricket operations) Saba Karim and CEO Rahul Johri. "Respected sir, I would like to bring to your kind notice that I have come to decision to step away from the sport and retire from all forms and levels of the game.....," an excerpt from the letter says.
Rayudu has not given a reason for the sudden announcement. Repeated attempts to reach the player for comments proved futile. Though the 33-year-old could not make it to the World Cup, he had made heads turn with a tweet a day after the squad was announced. The tweet was apparently aimed the Selection Committee chairman MSK Prasad, who had said that Vijay Shankar brings in a "three-dimensional" quality to the side. “Just ordered a new set of [three-dimensional] glasses to watch the World Cup,” the April 16 tweet, which is still his latest, reads.
The Hyderabad native was in the standby list of three players, but was ignored when two replacements were needed in the squad owing to injuries to Shikhar Dhawan and Shankar. Rishabh Pant and Mayank Agarwal were respectively called to strengthen the squad. Rayudu thanked the captains he has played under. "It has been a honour and privilege to have represented our country. I would like to thank the captains I have played under: MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma and especially Virat Kohli who always showed great belief in me throughout my career with the Indian team....," he said in the letter.