CricketFormer Selector Chief MSK Prasad responds to Rayudu’s World Cup 2019 snub
Ambati Rayudu, who was considered to be the answer to India’s middle order issues in the past, was overlooked for the World Cup 2019 and was not selected in the squad even after India’s opener Shikhar Dhawan got injured. After Vijay Shankar was injured, Rayudu was still ignored. When India lost the semi-final, he announced his retirement from international cricket.
Recently, in an interview, the 37-year-old opened up about his 2019 World Cup snub and revealed that the selectors at the time had a problem with him and although he was told before to be prepared for the World Cup, when the time came he wasn’t added in the squad. In response to Rayudu’s statement, former Chief of Selectors MSK Prasad, who was the chief selector during the 2019 World Cup, defended the BCCI.
Prasad responded to Rayudu’s allegations
Prasad, who is also a former Indian player, stated in an interview that there are five selectors on the selection committee, and the team’s captain also sits on the committee. The decision is entirely collective and not made by one person. If one person can take decisions, you don’t need five selectors. He said, “I may propose something, but unless others accept it it will not be agreed upon, there is no individual decision in the committee, and it will not be valid.
The former selector’s chief also reacted to Rayudu’s allegations regarding Andhra captaincy. He said, “During long cricketing seasons, a small difference can happen between the team and there can be differences of opinion even among brothers. There cannot be any reason for such a carryover, as there are small differences here and it is a big stage for the selection of the Indian cricket team. Rayudu has been selected for the Indian team for all the previous international games before the World Cup.
Rayudu took retirement from all formats of Cricket
Prasad further cleared the air and said “The selection process is an absolute collective decision, but it will never be an individual opinion”. Rayudu won the IPL 2023 last month with the Chennai Super Kings. He announced his international retirement in July 2019, and before the IPL 2023 final, he announced his IPL tournament, followed by quitting all forms of cricket. Rayudu got a great ending to his career as he scored 18 runs off nine balls in the final match and contributed to the team’s win against the Gujarat Titans.
