On Thursday, former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu took a significant step into politics by joining the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) in Vijayawada, in the presence of Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. The welcoming committee, including Deputy CM Narayana Swamy and MP Peddireddy Mithun Reddy, witnessed this momentous occasion, with the official X (formerly Twitter) handle of YSRCP sharing a video of the event.

The tweet from YSRCP announced, "Famous Indian cricketer Ambati Tirupati Rayudu joined the YSR Congress Party in the presence of Chief Minister Shri YS Jagan at the CM Camp office. Deputy CM Narayana Swamy and MP Peddireddy Mithun Reddy participated in this program."

Having concluded his cricketing career after the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season, Rayudu, a representative of Andhra Pradesh and Hyderabad in domestic cricket, formally entered Andhra Pradesh politics following his retirement from international cricket due to being excluded from the 2019 World Cup squad.

Expressing his dedication to public service, Rayudu stated, "I shall soon enter politics in Andhra Pradesh. Before that, I have decided to visit different parts of the district to know the people’s pulse and understand their problems."

Despite speculations about Rayudu contesting the 2024 Lok Sabha elections from Guntur or Machilipatnam parliamentary constituency in Andhra Pradesh, he dispelled such notions, clarifying that there was no truth to these claims.

Ambati Rayudu is renowned for his temperament and many times he faced the consequences for being the hot headed. During Ranji matches he was involved in altercations with opponent players and this resulted in him getting banned. When he was excluded from the World Cup squad, he came up with the fanboys 3D glasses pastry post taking a dig at the selectors.

He however played a key role in CSK's IPL victory recently. It has to be seen how Ambati Rayudu will strengthen the ruling YSRCP as he manytimes showed his admiration for CM Jagan Mohan Reddy.