‘Some adulation, some cheers, some recognition’: Ambati Rayudu got his wish list in the end

“Some recognition, some adulation, and a few cheers,” Ambati Rayudu had once told this correspondent about his decision to join the rebel league of ICL. The boy who feared his days would end in anonymity would get all that and more when he returned to the official fold. But as luck would have it, it’s the T20 format, and in particular IPL, where his star would shine. Unfortunately, his Indian dream soured when he wasn’t picked for the 50-over world cup in 2019; he announced retirement, was cajoled out of it, had a couple more good summers, and has now announced that this would be his last IPL. The boy who feared waiting for good times is now bowing out with the cricketing world’s appreciation about his talent but a sigh of what could have been would evaporate into air whenever his name comes up in the future.

ATR’s journey in Yellove narrated by the man himself 📹#WhistlePodu #Yellove 🦁💛 @RayuduAmbati pic.twitter.com/lASH0uWXW1

— Chennai Super Kings (@ChennaiIPL) May 29, 2023

“I am talking about the bigger picture. The system is wrong. There is no proper method to track players,” Rayudu had said then. “We were not getting selected for higher grades. If you were playing for Duleep Trophy or India A, it’s a different thing. But this is our chance to play against quality opposition for three years and it will also be telecast on TV. People will hopefully see me perform.” He kept talking about how the ICL games would be on TV and the world would realise how good he was. Not sure about ICL which faded into a fog of fixing mess, but the world got to see and gasp at his talent in the IPL for sure.

2 great teams mi nd csk,204 matches,14 seasons,11 playoffs,8 finals,5 trophies.hopefully 6th tonight. It’s been quite a journey.I have decided that tonight’s final is going to be my last game in the Ipl.i truly hav enjoyed playing this great tournament.Thank u all. No u turn 😂🙏

— ATR (@RayuduAmbati) May 28, 2023

A most fascinating character – short tempered, quick to take offence, quicker to calm down, he has picked up fights with opposition, at times with his team-mates, involved in road brawls, and yet most of the figures in the cricketing world talk about his innate goodness, loyalty, talent, fiery competitive streak, and sense of humour. The world saw the last trait when a day after the former chairman of selectors MSK Prasad had said Vijay Shankar was preferred over Rayudu for the 2019 world cup as he is a three-dimensional player (batting, bowling, fielding), Rayudu let it rip: “Just ordered a new set of 3d glasses to watch the World Cup.” Rayudu vs selectors have been an age-old battle. Perhaps, one of his earlier India A coaches and a vocal admirer Roger Binny had nailed it in 2007: “The selectors should have picked him right after his under-19 stint (around 2001). He needed to be guided properly.” Only CSK provided that environment for him to sparkle.

The temper has thrown up so many stories that it could fill a couple of chapters if one were to write a book on him. One of the funniest incidents was narrated to this newspaper by his one-time Ranji team-mate Munaf Patel who recalled an otherwise ordinary day of cricket at the Moti Bagh ground in Baroda. The day had started with a bet in the dressing room about who was more hot-tempered: Munaf or Rayudu. Munaf and Yusuf Pathan had betted on Rayudu while Irfan Pathan and Rayudu had plunged for Munaf.

During the game, at one point, a few stray dogs ran behind Rayudu. A few stray fans, ever-alert to comic possibilities shout out, “Rayudu, kutta!” (Rayudu, dog!). Rayudu wasn’t amused. He charged to the batsman Yuvraj Singh, demanded the bat that he intended to carry beyond the boundary—ala Inzamam ul Haq. Yuvraj called out to Munaf for help. “Voh bola, samjha yaar isko, ask him not to do anything silly,” Munaf recalls amidst fits of laughter. “I told him, ‘Calm down bhai, they are just joking’. But he went to the boundary line to tell the fans what he thought of them. Later, I got a couple of people from the crowd and Rayudu apologised “It’s me only, bhai!”.

Lest this piece drift into amusing tales about his character, it was his batting that first made everyone notice. In particular, the on-the-up feisty punches through covers, and the pulls. Faiz Fazal, a Ranji Trophy winning captain, recalled that even the teenage Rayudu would stun everyone with those shots.
“Even as a teenager, he would play the pulls and those on-the-up drives through covers. He was all class. Fiercely competitive, and he hated losing, and I thought not just ODIs, he would also play Tests for India,” Fazal had told this newspaper. His friend Aaron Paul, son of his coach, would say that he has seen a nine-year old Rayudu smash 15-year bowlers with those shots.

Chennai Super Kings’ Ambati Rayudu plays a shot during the Indian Premier League qualifier cricket match between Chennai Super Kings and Gujrat Titans in Chennai, India, Tuesday, May 23, 2023. (AP Photo /R. Parthibhan)

“I thought he would be the first one to play for India from the U-19 batch in 2000-02,” Irfan Pathan, who would win the race to the Indian dressing room from that batch, had told this newspaper. “I still remember his knocks against England junior team in 2002—a 177 in particular: classy, full of strokes, and I really thought he would make it to the Indian team in a year.”

Over the years, we have seen all those shots in the IPL. One of the more successful and consistent counter-attackers in this format, he has been a rock to CSK, along with Suresh Raina, in the middle order. The confidence that came from being labelled as a prodigy can be seen in him to this day. He is a batsman who backs himself in any situation and is always confident that he can counterattack his way out of trouble – and all that dates back to his developmental days when it was considered a given that he would be a big India player one day.

The India career didn’t work out the way he might have wanted but in IPL, for countless summer evenings, Ambati Rayudu found what he desired: Some recognition, some adulation, and a few cheers.