Former Indian cricketer and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) player Amabati Rayudu joined YSR Congress Party in the presence of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy on Thursday, December 28. The cricketer had announced his retirement in June 2023. He had said at the time that after this year’s IPL season he would enter politics. He also later met CM Jagan which had given rise to speculations that he would join the YSRCP.
Following his June meeting with the CM, Rayudu was seen participating in various programmes of the party. In November, he inaugurated the ward sachivalayam (secretariat) along with YSRCP Denduluru MLA Abbaya Chowdary.
Reacting to YSRCP’s ‘Why AP needs Jagan Campaign’, held in November, Rayudu had credited Jagan for the development in the state and had said that under the CM’s leadership, the state had been making rapid progress in infrastructure and that Jagan had created employment opportunities for the youth.
In December, Ambati Rayudu and several other sports persons were appointed as brand ambassadors for the Adudam Andhra festival by the state cabinet. Adudam Andhra is a 47-day sports festival in which around 1.2 crore youth are anticipated to take part. It is being conducted by the state government to encourage and recognise sporting talent at the ground level.
Rayudu, who belongs to the Kapu community (Forward Caste), also participated in an outreach programme for Kapus in the Tenali constituency of Guntur district earlier this month. According to political experts, Rayudu has been inducted into the YSRCP to stand against actor-turned-politician and chief of Jana Sena Party (JSP) Pawan Kalyan, who also belongs to the Kapu community.
Earlier on May 28, Rayadu announced his retirement from cricket on the eve of the IPL 2023 final between the CSK and Gujarat Titans. CSK went on to defeat the Gujarat Titans in the final match and won the cup for the fifth time in a row.