The 2019 ODI World Cup in England was full of entertainment and drama for India as they finished their journey in the semifinal with a defeat against New Zealand at Old Trafford in Manchester. The encounter was also the farewell encounter of the former World Cup-winning captain, MS Dhoni, who announced his international retirement from the game a year later.
But even from the start of the tournament, controversy had hit India just after they announced their squad for the event. It was regarding the selection of the middle-order batter Ambati Rayudu, who was left out of the squad. He was touted to be the team’s first-choice number-four batter.
In 2018, the right-handed batter smashed 392 runs in ten innings at an average of 56 and a strike rate of over 90 with the help of three half-centuries and one century at the best score of 100 before following it up with 247 more runs as many innings in 2019 at an average of 30.88, shouldering on two half-centuries.
“If Virat Kohli didn’t like anyone, then they were cut”- India’s former wicket-keeper
The then chief selector of India, MSK Prasad, went with the Tamil Nadu all-rounder Vijay Shankar for the position because of his ‘3D skills.’ Rayudu’s frustration was expected as he referred to the management’s logic as stupid and felt that his quiet demeanor was misjudged as a lack of confidence.
But the former wicket-keeper of the national side, Robin Uthappa, has dropped a bombshell on the entire incident as he recalled the snub and blamed it on Virat Kohli, who was the leader of the squad back then.
“If he (Virat Kohli) didn’t like anyone, he didn’t feel someone was good, then they were cut. (Ambati) Rayudu is the prime example. You feel bad. Everybody has preferences, I agree, but you cannot close the door on a player after taking him to the cusp.” The 2007 World Cup winner tore into the Delhi batter for his treatment with the former legendary all-rounder of the side, Yuvraj Singh, who was recovering from cancer.
“He had World Cup clothes, World Cup kit bag, everything was there at his home. A player would be thinking that he is going to the World Cup. But you shut the door on him. That wasn’t fair, according to me.” Robin Uthappa addressed.
Even during the second group fixture of the tournament, India lost their left-handed opening batter, Shikhar Dhawan, to injury after the southpaw celebrated a fine century in the game. Still, the selectors didn’t go back to Rayudu, as Vijay Shankar was injured later on.
The former Hyderabad captain didn’t hold back and took on the social media to reveal his feeling. Prasad, later on, reckoned that a few decisions are made based on the other selectors’ views and even from the captain, who has a huge role in making these decisions.
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“That team management thought that just because I’m calm quiet and always to myself. They thought maybe I was not too confident. That’s some stupid logic these guys come up with sometimes. How can you judge someone’s confidence by looking at them.” Rayudu expressed during a YouTube show in 2023, besides highlighting that the management wasn’t true to themselves regarding their decisions.
The middle-order batter of India declared his retirement from all formats of the game on May 29, 2023, before he last featured for the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and helped them win their fifth title of the Indian Premier League (IPL).