"He played for RCB and did not do anything" - Ambati Rayudu takes brutal dig at England legend for joker comment in IPL 2024

Former batter Ambati Rayudu took a dig at England legend Kevin Pietersen for his 'joker' comment after the IPL 2024 final. Post the final, Pietersen had called Rayudu a joker on air.

SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) contested the IPL 2024 final. Ambati Rayudu first wore an orange waistcoat to show his support for SRH. However, he switched to another color after KKR won the final.

Kevin Pietersen playfully called Rayudu a 'joker' on air as he switched colors and did not stick to one team. As the matter escalated on social media, Pietersen even clarified with a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Kevin Pietersen🦏

@KP24

Come on guys! ​This tribalism with/against Indian players on social media needs to slow down!​Example - @RayuduAmbati and I were messing around after the IPL final and all of sudden that banter has turned into an avalanche of abuse towards Ambati. ​PLEASE stop it? 🙏🏽

Ambati Rayudu reacted when asked about the same on a recent podcast appearance. He revealed that the experts had not picked a favorite team for the final as such. However, he took a dig at Pietersen and said that the former cricketer could not achieve anything when he represented Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

"That day we had not picked teams. Chennai was hot, so I had two jackets. On air, he said whatever, but we could also tell him things because he played for RCB and did not do anything. I was maintaining professional decorum. He apologized also later that I should not have said that on air. We were just having banter, but people took it in some way. But it affected him more and not me," he said. (1:08:36)

Notably, Pietersen featured for RCB in 2009 and 2010. He made 93 runs from six matches in 2009 and 236 runs from seven outings in 2010.

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Ambati Rayudu clarifies that he did not call Navjot Singh Sidhu a chameleon

Ambati Rayudu has been embroiled in controversy multiple times. The Pietersen incident was not the only one. During IPL 2025, he was involved in a banter on air with former India opener Navjot Singh Sidhu.

Rayudu had called Sidhu a chameleon on air during a game between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK). However, on the podcast, he clarified that he had not called Sidhu a chameleon literally but had only told him not to switch sides often.

"I did not call him (Sidhu) a Chameleon. I told him not to change colors like a Chameleon. I didn't call him that. You can't say that. Technically, I did not say that to him. We have made peace. I spoke to him and he spoke to me. He was also in a funny mood that day, and so was I. I respect him a lot, and there is no bad blood," he said. (1:06:09)

"It was just like don't change your colors type, because he was going with the moment that who would win. You had to pick a team beforehand. He just told me you are opinionated, and he is very encouraging that way," he added.

Ambati Rayudu played for two of the most successful teams in the IPL. He was a part of the Mumbai Indians (MI) from 2010 to 2017 and then played for CSK from 2018 to 2023.