'No U-turn' - Ahead of IPL 2023 Final, CSK's Ambati Rayudu announces retirement

Former India One-Day International (ODI) specialist and four-time former winner Chennai Super Kings (CSK) regular Ambati Rayudu on Sunday announced that the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) Final against defending champion Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will be his last game in the cash-rich league.

Rayudu, who had retired from international cricket after being overlooked for the 2019 ICC World Cup in England, had a couple of years back announced his retirement from domestic cricket only to retract his decision later. However, in a tweet on Sunday, the 38-year-old Hyderabadi said that there won't be any U-turn this time around after scoring 139 runs in 15 games.

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"2 great teams, MI [Mumbai Indians]and CSK, 204 matches, 14 seasons, 11 playoffs, 8 finals, 5 trophies. hopefully 6th tonight. It's been quite a journey. I have decided that tonight's final is going to be my last game in the IPL. I truly enjoyed playing in this great tournament. Thank u all. No U-turn," Rayudu tweeted.

In 55 ODIs for India, Rayudu scored 1694 runs with three 100s and 10 50s at an average of 47-plus. It was in Twenty20 (T20) cricket, however, where he made a big name having been a vital cog in the CSK set-up for close to a decade. Before Sunday's final, he has played 203 IPL games, scoring 4,329 runs at a strike rate of 127 with 22 half-centuries and a single century. The 602 runs in the 2018 season for CSK were his best effort. However, it is understood that once he retires from the Indian domestic scene, Rayudu is free to ply his trade in various franchise leagues as well as veterans' T20 tournaments.

(With inputs from PTI)