After racking up the runs in the IPL earlier this year, Ambati Rayudu was rewarded with a spot in India’s ODI squad for the three-match ODI 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.
Huge debate
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.
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 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.