New Delhi: Former India batter Ambati Rayudu snapped back at Kevin Pietersen as he responded to his ‘joker’ jibe from the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 final. Rayudu and Pietersen were both on broadcasting duties during the final between Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). Pietersen had called Rayudu a ‘joker’ for allegedly changing his allegiances following KKR’s victory in the final.
Rayudu was spotted wearing an orange waistcoat, supporting SRH ahead of the final. However, he switched to a different colour blazer after the conclusion of the final. During a post-match chat, Pietersen, who was supporting KKR ahead of the final, mocked Rayudu for not sticking with his team.
“I have at least held firm. I wore it and I owned it. You are a joker, always a joker,” Pietersen told Rayudu on air.
“I am supporting both the teams. I am supporting good cricket,” Rayudu replied.
Rayudu opened up on the incident during an interview on Shubhankar Mishra’s YouTube channel. The former India batter revealed he was trying to be neutral as a commentator and was not cheering for any specific team. Rayudu also took a cheeky dig at Pietersen, questioning his contributions during his stint with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the IPL.
The former Chennai Super Kings (CSK) star said he could have used that to shut Pietersen during their conversation, but he chose not to. He also revealed that Pietersen apologised to him later, and that the incident affected him more.
“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 apologised later, also, for saying that on air. We were just having banter, but people took it in some way. But it affected him more and not me,” Rayudu said on the podcast.