Ambati Rayudu ends CPL 2023 stint with St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots due to personal reasons

Veteran batter Ambati Rayudu has cut short his stint with the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) due to personal reasons. He had recently become the second Indian player to compete in the tournament after Pravin Tambe.

Rayudu marked his CPL debut with a duck and scored some handy runs across his next set of appearances. He ended with 47 runs at an average of 15.66 and a strike rate of 117.50 after coming in as a marquee player for the franchise following his retirement from Indian cricket.

His switch to the CPL was doubtful for a while due to the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) policy of a colling period for retired players to feature in overseas leagues. The right-handed batter was recently part of the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) team that lifted the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) title.

Apart from Rayudu, Zimbabwe pacer Blessing Muzarabani has also opted to leave the tournament midway because of personal reasons. The Patriots bowler played three matches in the 2023 edition and claimed one wicket at a strike rate of 69 and an economy rate of 10.61.

According to a report by ESPN Cricinfo, the franchise have roped in the English duo of Benny Howell and Will Smeed as repalcements for Muzarabani and Rayudu respectively.

They are currently languishing at the bottom of the table, having yet to win a single match so far. Their first two matches were washed out due to rain, and they have proceeded to lose every match they have played since then.

Their most recent defeat came against the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) on August 27 at the Warner Park in St.Kitts.

Ambati Rayudu will play for the MI Emirates in the ILT20 2024

The veteran batter was recently named as one of the eight new players brought in by the MI Emirates ahead of the 2024 International League T20 (ILT20) season. He was also on the verge of joining the Joburg Super Kings (JSK) in the upcoming SA20 2024 season.

He was initially slated to play for the Texas Super Kings (TSK) as well in the recently concluded Major League Cricket (MLC), but he had to pull out five days before the tournament started as the BCCI were considering their stance on the cooling period for players who wanted too partake in overseas leagues after retiring from Indian cricket.