A right-handed middle-order batsman, once touted to be the next big thing in Indian cricket, Ambati Rayudu showed great promise. At 16, he rose to fame with an unbeaten 177 to complete India's U-19 tour of England in 2002. Rayudu made his first-class debut for Hyderabad in the 2001-02 season. In the following season, he performed at an exceptional level. He became the youngest player to score a double-century and century in the same Ranji match. In 2007, Rayudu's career took a nosedive when he decided to join Indian Cricket League. He received respite when he took BCCI's amnesty in 2009. Rayudu's performance in the next Ranji Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy made sure he was picked by the Mumbai Indians in 2010 for the Indian Premier League (IPL) and played for them till 2017. After that, he was picked up by the Chennai Super Kings in 2018. Rayudu's stint with the Indian team began when he debuted against Zimbabwe in an ODI in 2013. In 2014, he made his T20I debut against England. However, Rayudu never had a consistent run with the team and had his chances only when the main players were rested.