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Cricket World Player of the Week - Ambati Rayudu

by Saksham Mishra & Cricket World Monday 21 September 2020

©Reuters

For his power-packed 71-run blitz for Chennai Super Kings in the opening fixture of IPL 2020, Ambati Rayudu is the Cricket World Player of the Week.

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Chasing a target of 163, which was a decent one at the Sheik Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi, where the ball was moving around a fair bit under lights, Ambati Rayudu stepped out to bat with Chennai Super Kings at 6/2.

James Pattinson and Trent Boult had the new ball on a string, and given Mumbai Indians' track record against Chennai Super Kings, the defending champions were the favorites. Rayudu added 115 runs with Faf du Plessis to change the face of the game.

By the time he was dismissed off Rahul Chahar on the last ball of the 16th over for a well-made 71 off just 48 deliveries, Chennai were ahead in the game by a fair margin.

FIFTY!

First 50 of #Dream11IPL comes up.@RayuduAmbati hits his 19th IPL half-century off 33 deliveries.#MIvCSK pic.twitter.com/fKB5DutNPU
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) September 19, 2020

Given that this was Rayudu's first competitive match since he turned up for Hyderabad in a match against Chhattisgarh in November 2019, his 6 fours and 3 sixes became even more extraordinary.

Rayudu, who had a point to prove after the selectors did not show faith in him for the number four spot in the Indian team for the 2019 World Cup, took on the likes of Jasprit Bumrah to make a statement, that even at 34, he still has a lot of cricket left in him.