MSK Prasad Finally Speaks On Ambati Rayudu’s Exclusion For The 2019 World Cup

Ambati Rayudu’s omission from India’s playing squad for the World Cup tournament in England last year came as a big shock for everyone as the cricketer was expected to be India’s choice for the no. 4 position. Ambati Rayudu made a mark at the Asia Cup in 2018, where he impressed one and all with his brilliant performance to become a regular in the Indian cricket team.
However, his poor form against New Zealand and an inconsistent run in the IPL led to Ambati Rayudu’s omission from Team India’s playing squad for the World Cup last year. He was replaced by allrounder Vijay Shankar. Major disappointment came when Shikhar Dhawan was injured amidst the tournament and Rishabh Pant was called as his replacement.

Following this, a disappointed Ambati Rayudu took to his Twitter and announced his retirement, which created a stir on social media and in cricket world as well.
Now after all these months,  India chief selector MSK Prasad has finally opened up about his omission from the World Cup squad and admitted that he felt bad when he was excluded from the team. Talking about his exclusion from World Cup squad, MSK Prasad said:
“I felt seriously for Rayudu. I can clearly say that. It was a very touch and go issue. Our committee always felt that he should be on the radar of Test selection after the 2016 Zimbabwe tour. And, I spoke to him as to why he was not focussing on Test cricket,”

He added:
“If you remember, based on the IPL performances, we picked him for ODIs, which may not look appropriate to many. Then, we focussed on his fitness for one month at the NCA, helped him there. He has delivered to an extent.”
MSK Prasad also admitted that having played with Ambati Rayudu, he felt bad after what happened to him. He said:
“Unfortunately, I am also hurt at what happened to him (apparently referring to the 2019 World Cup selection when Rayudu was ignored) having played with him. I feel bad for him.”