Former Indian cricketer Ambati Rayudu is reportedly entering politics and is set to contest the upcoming Lok Sabha elections from Andhra Pradesh on the YSRCP (Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party) ticket. Rayudu, who recently won the Indian Premier League (IPL) for a record sixth time, met with Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy. It is not yet clear whether he will contest the assembly polls or the Lok Sabha elections. If he decides to contest the assembly polls, he has a strong chance of standing from either Guntur West or Ponnur. If he opts for the Lok Sabha elections, Machalipatnam is said to be his likely constituency.
Several former cricketers have entered politics in the past. In fact, Mohammad Azharuddin, former Indian captain and cricketer from Telangana, fought on an Indian National Congress ticket and was elected as a Member of Parliament from Moradabad in Uttar Pradesh. Manoj Tiwary, who played for Bengal and various Indian Premier League teams, joined the Trinamool Congress Party ahead of the assembly polls in West Bengal in 2021 and is now the minister of Youth Affairs and Sports.
Gautam Gambhir, whose innings of 97 in the 2011 World Cup finals has been overshadowed by Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s 91, also entered politics in 2019 and is currently a BJP MP from East Delhi. Another former cricketer and member of the World Cup-winning team of 1983, Kirti Azad, also joined the saffron party in the late 1990s and is now part of the All India Trinamool Congress.
Other cricketers-turned-politicians include former Test opener Chetan Chauhan, who became a Member of Parliament from Amroha in Uttar Pradesh in 1991 and 1998 as a BJP member, and Navjot Singh Sidhu, who started his career with the BJP and was the Amritsar MP before joining the Indian National Congress. Ashok Dinda, a legislator from Moyna, also entered politics after his cricket career ended.
Vinod Kambli, Masur Ali Khan Pataudi, and Mohammad Kaif are amongst many others who switched from cricket to politics. With so many cricketers entering politics over the years, it will be interesting to see what Rayudu brings to the table.
