Rayudu shrugs off Indian squad snub

After racking up the runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) earlier this year, Ambati Rayudu was rewarded with a spot in India’s One-Day International (ODI) squad for the three-match series series in England. Rayudu had made a comeback to the national team at the age of 32 — a praiseworthy achievement indeed.

In a bitterly disappointing turn of events, the middle-order batsman was shunted out before the squad had even boarded their planes to England. Rayudu had failed to clear the mandatory Yo-Yo fitness test, and paid a heavy price.

'Disappointed'

This led to a huge debate on whether the Yo-Yo test should be used as selection criteria, but Rayudu insisted that he had no one to blame but himself. “I was disappointed with myself that I could not clear the Yo-Yo test. I have nothing against the decision to make the test compulsory. Every Indian team cricketer has to have a certain fitness level. I am happy that there is a certain fitness benchmark for international cricketers,” Rayudu said here on Thursday.

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Rayudu is now working his way back into competitive cricket, having cleared the Yo-Yo test a few days back. He announced his return with an unbeaten, match-winning 62 against Australia-A in the Quadrangular Series here on Thursday.

The attacking batsman, who last played for India on the 2016 Zimbabwe tour, added, “In a country of one billion people, if you are able to represent your country, it is a matter of pride. I am happy that I am now in the scheme of things with the India-A team, and I’m waiting for the opportunity to wear the national colours again,” Rayudu said.