Robin Uthappa Taking a Stand for Ambati Rayudu Affected His Relationship with Virat Kohli

Ambati Rayudu's exclusion from the 2019 Cricket World Cup caused a huge commotion.

Robin Uthappa Taking a Stand for Ambati Rayudu Affected His Relationship with Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli, Ambati Rayudu and Robin Uthappa (Image via News 18/Lallantop)

The Virat Kohli captaincy era saw Indian cricket reaching many highs in Test match cricket. From laying low at No. 7 to reaching the heights of No. 1 and staying there for a number of years was the hallmark of the Delhi boy’s captaincy.

However, when it came to ICC white ball tournaments, he was often termed as an unsuccessful captain with the evident reason of him not being able to deliver a World Cup trophy to India. His predecessor and successor in the form of MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma winning multiple ICC trophies have made matters trickier from time to time.

One such famous ICC event was the 2019 ODI World Cup held in England. There was constant chatter about the number 4 spot in the team’s batting line up and the fans felt that Ambati Rayudu, with his consistent performances, has nailed that spot down. To everyone’s surprise, the World Cup squad that was announced saw Rayudu’s name not featuring at all.

The batter made a famous comment about watching the World Cup with 3D glasses as he too was bemused with his exclusion. Many blamed the management and the captain for his exclusion.

In recent times, former cricketer Robin Uthappa in multiple podcasts gave a blunt take on Kohli’s treatment of Rayudu during that phase. He was critical of Kohli’s captaincy and blamed the superstar batter directly for Rayudu’s surprise exclusion.

However, as it has turned out, the off-field relationship between Uthappa and Kohli has seemed to have gone downhill with an air of discomfort between the two after the former’s comments on the latter. Robin Uthappa on his YouTube channel has disclosed his thoughts on the entire situation and what he felt he could have done better.

I realized that what I said back then did affect my relationship with Virat. I saw what Ambati Rayudu was going through during the 2019 World Cup, and I reacted emotionally. But I never discussed it with Virat. I should have spoken to him directly rather than saying it on national television. I think if I had spoken to Virat before making those comments, it would have been better for our relationship. Saying it on TV without giving him a chance to explain was not the right thing to do.

Robin Uthappa said via his YouTube channel

Uthappa certainly has felt disappointed in the way his relationship has changed with Kohli. The former wicketkeeper not considering having a chat with Kohli before saying statements of this magnitude has certainly been a blunder, and he has realized that.

With Kohli continuing to play ODI cricket for India and the IPL, and at the same time Uthappa being in the commentary panel of such tournaments, there would be multiple instances of both individuals crossing paths. It will be an interesting meeting between the two if they feel the need to clear the air that has bloated up between them.

How did Ambati Rayudu’s exclusion hurt India in the 2019 World Cup?

The number 4 batting position is often considered the glue of any batting side. You can be in as early as the first over or as late as the 50th. The versatility that a number 4 batter must possess is massive. Ambati Rayudu prior to the 2019 World Cup did show a great deal of versatility with consistent performances behind the celebrated trio of Rohit Sharma, Shikhar Dhawan and Virat Kohli.

With his exclusion, India was once again in a spot of bother for that number 4 spot in the side. Initially, the thought was that KL Rahul would seal the spot and provide solidity in the middle. However, with Dhawan’s unfortunate injury in the second game, Rahul had to be pushed to open the batting.

Ambati Rayudu's exclusion from 2019 World Cup impacted India.
Ambati Rayudu and Virat Kohli (via NDTV Sports)

India then had to place all-rounders like Hardik Pandya and Vijay Shankar at number 4 and create a makeshift batting order. India didn’t face any major problems up until the semifinals as the top 3 would regularly score big runs, with Sharma having a standout series of five hundreds. It was in the semifinals that India’s lack of a solid batter at number 4 got exposed.

With Sharma, Kohli and Rahul all getting dismissed for just 1, India all of a sudden had the inexperienced Rishabh Pant at number 4 for that match trying to provide solidity. Pant eventually fell to lack of patience as, apart from Ravindra Jadeja, the batting line up crumbled rather easily, which led to India bowing out of the tournament. India’s lack of a genuine number 4 did hurt in that semifinal, and Rayudu’s exclusion raised more eyebrows.

Also Read: