Coming out of retirement isn't a U-turn: Ambati Rayudu

Ambati Rayudu, who has recently announced a comeback to the game, has cleared the air on his decision and said that it is not a U-turn. Claiming that he still has "good amount" of cricket left in him, the right-handed batsman set top priority for scoring runs for Hyderabad.

"I declined lucrative offers to play in T10 and T20 leagues in Canada and other countries. I have come out of retirement for well-wishers. It is not a U-turn as good reasons I believe I have good amount of cricket left in me. My top priority is now to get runs for Hyderabad,'' Rayudu told Telangana Today.

The talented batsman further added that he was expecting to be India's No 4 at the World Cup. Mentioning that the omission left him in a state of shock, he said, "I had worked very hard to be ready for the World Cup. I quit red-ball cricket for the World Cup. I was extremely fit and doing the role which the team asked me to do at No.4 and suddenly when you are not in the team, it was shocking. There was no communication from the team members also."

Rayudu decided to hang up his boots after facing consecutive omissions from India's squad for the World Cup. The 33-year-old though received flak for his decision with several experts citing it as an emotional one. However, barely two months after drawing the curtains down on his career, Rayudu wrote to the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) a few days ago saying that he wanted to come out of the retirement and play cricket in all formats. He also took the opportunity to thank the Chennai Super Kings, VVS Laxman, and Noel David for supporting him in tough times.