HCA Secretary Lambastes Ambati Rayudu's Exclusion from England Tour

Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) secretary, T. Sheshnarayan has slammed Ambati Rayudu’s exclusion from England tour.

Rayudu was shown the exit doors after he failed to clear the Yo-Yo test. Rayudu’s Chennai Super Kings teammate, Suresh Raina was named as his replacement.

However, Ambati Rayudu achieved great success in the IPL 2018. MS Dhoni-led team’s opener was instrumental in the side’s success, as he scored 602 runs to be the fourth highest run-getter in the IPL 2018. Furthermore, Rayudu was top run-scorer from Chennai Super Kings.

Golden opportunity of Rayudu went begging.

HCA Secretary T. Sheshnarayan criticised the ouster of Rayudu. He said, “This looks very lopsided deep-rooted. Since a person who got nearly the highest runs in IPL this year and has also played all the 50-over games in the domestic season, he now finds himself unfit on some highly overrated fitness tests. How can an unfit person score so many runs?”.

The HCA secretary added it is very harsh on Rayudu who has performed brilliantly. He went on to add HCA will stand by their players and fight for their rights.

“This is very harsh and draconian. HCA will stand by its players and fight for their rights,” he added.

Sheshnarayan went on to add there is a lot of politics in the BCCI. The secretary demanded the process of the Yo-Yo test should be made more transparent. He added public should know about the whereabouts of the fitness test.

“We know what is going on behind the scenes and people are taking advantage of the fluid situation in the BCCI and pushing decisions. We demand that the process of the tests be made transparent and open to public domain.”

It was unfortunate for Ambati Rayudu to miss out on the England tour despite performing brilliantly in the IPL. The right-hander had found his place in the national side after a long time. Thus, it must have been frustrating for him to miss out on his opportunity.

Similarly, a talented Sanju Samson was also shown the exit doors from the India A side after he failed the fitness test. Ishan Kishan had replaced him.