“Every team would have loved to have him”: Robin Uthappa on star Indian Player

Former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) batsman Robin Uthappa paid an emotional ode to his former teammate after Ambati Rayudu announced his retirement from the Indian Premier League (IPL). Before the championship game between Gujarat Titans (GT) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the 16th season of the lucrative league, Rayudu declared his departure from the IPL. But due to rain at Ahmedabad’s Narendra Modi Stadium, his final performance was pushed back to Monday, May 29.

Uthappa believes Rayudu to be one of the most underappreciated athletes India has ever produced. Due to Rayudu’s skill as a campaigner, the former was completely shocked that the latter did not receive his just compensation. Rayudu, it should be noted, did not participate for India in the game’s longest format.

Uthappa said on JioCinema

“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,” Uthappa told JioCinema.

Uthappa continued by claiming that Ambati Rayudu had excelled as a student of the sport and was an expert in it. He also praised him for being a team player and said that any squad would have adored him. He continued by saying that he found the 37-year-old’s retirement to be both sad and touching.

“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,” Uthappa added.

“I have loved him from the age of my junior days. He dominated cricket through junior cricket. His retirement is kind of sombre and heartfelt for me,” the 37-year-old stated.

Rayudu opened and scored 602 runs for CSK in the IPL 2018 when his career was viewed as being gone, according to Robin Uthappa. He claimed that while Rayudu’s performance was ridiculed by many, once CSK won the championship, he was showered with acclaim. Notably, the cricketer from Andhra Pradesh was able to rejoin the India team thanks to his remarkable performance in the 2018 season.

The former CSK player added that Rayudu consistently stood up despite being handed various duties at various points in his IPL career. Uthappa believes that the support personnel who have always stood behind the experienced batter deserve a lot of the credit. In addition, Rayudu never grumbled when the team administration questioned him about taking on new tasks.

“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,” Uthappa further added.

“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,” Uthappa concluded.

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