Former Indian cricketer Robin Uthappa hailed Chennai Super Kings batter Ambati Rayudu as one of the underrated cricket from India and reckons that the Indian veteran should have played red-ball cricket for India. The 37-year-old has announced his retirement from cricket following the grand final against Gujarat Titans on Monday.
Robin Uthappa, who has shared the dressing room alongside Ambati Rayudu in the Indian team and Chennai Super Kings on his retirement, said that CSK batter is the complete team man to have any side and reckons that every team would love to have him on their team.
Cricketer-turned-commentator Robin Uthappa feels that Ambati Rayudu is one of the underrated cricketers in India and hails him as an astute student of the game and believes the Indian veteran will do anything for the team’s success at the highest level and expressed his liking for Rayudu from his younger days.
“He has been there, done that, and seen it all. He is one of the most underrated cricketers, India has ever produced. He should have played Test Cricket, I can’t believe he did not play the game. He is an astute student of the game, someone who knows the game inside out. Absolute team man will do anything for the team. Every team would have loved to have him. I have loved him from the age of my junior days,” Robin Uthappa told Jio Cinema.
Uthappa revealed that Ambati Rayudu has dominated junior cricket and said that the Indian veteran’s retirement is a heartfelt one for him playing with him for some time in the Indian team and Chennai Super Kings over the years.
“He dominated cricket through junior cricket. His retirement is kind of sombre and heartfelt for me,” he added.
Ambati Rayudu has played 55 ODIs and 6 T20Is and has hit three hundreds for India. In the Indian Premier League matches. Rayudu has played 203 matches and has scored 4329 runs, including a hundred in the IPL, having played only for two franchises Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings winning championships with them.
Ambati Rayudu Did The Grunt Work For CSK – Robin Uthappa
Robin Uthappa believes that Ambati Rayudu has done thankless for the Chennai Super Kings in the opportunity provided to him, as he has been sent down the order following the stellar 2018 season and said that he has been trolled for poor performance in the cash-rich league and feels that he deserves all the appreciation for his contribution to the Indian cricket.
“He did the grunt work for CSK. He opened in 2018, scored 600 runs and CSK won the title. They sent him in the middle to do grunt work after that. And he has done it without any complaint. People have trolled him for his performances and all that, but he has taken it on his chin. And the support staff have rallied around him. He deserves all the accolades,” Robin Uthappa added.
Chennai Super Kings will take on the defending champions Gujarat Titans in the final and the Indian veteran will look to finish his career on high by winning the IPL title against Hardik Pandya-led side on Monday.