Former Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians batter Ambati Rayudu has been a man in the headlines ever since the Royal Challengers Bengaluru were knocked out of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 campaign. Rayudu didn’t hesitate in taking a swipe at the Bengaluru franchise for the manner in which it is run while also targeting Virat Kohli in a subtle manner, suggesting it’s not the Orange Cap that wins a team the IPL title but collective effort. Rayudu’s most recent attempt targeting RCB came after the IPL 2024 final, where he got involved in a banter with former England captain Kevin Pietersen on Live TV.

Pietersen, in reaction to Rayudu’s ‘Orange Cap’ dig at Kohli, was caught calling the former India star a ‘joker’, with the incident going viral on social media. However, Pietersen has now issued clarification.

“Come on guys! This tribalism with/against Indian players on social media needs to slow down!

Example – @RayuduAmbati and I were messing around after the IPL final and all of a sudden that banter has turned into an avalanche of abuse towards Ambati.

PLEASE stop it?,” he wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).

Come on guys!

This tribalism with/against Indian players on social media needs to slow down!

Example – @RayuduAmbati and I were messing around after the IPL final and all of sudden that banter has turned into an avalanche of abuse towards Ambati.

PLEASE stop it?

— Kevin Pietersen (@KP24) May 28, 2024

Here’s how the full conversation unfolded between Rayudu, Pietersen and the broadcaster’s pundit after the IPL 2024 final:

Rayudu: When you have a stalwart and a legend like Virat Kohli, who has set really high standards, it’s very hard for the youngsters to be in a side like that and try and match his standard because he always wants the team to be performing at his level.

Pietersen: No, it should be good for youngsters…

Rayudu: But sometimes the burden of really trying to be Virat Kohli in a sport where you know nobody is going to be like him.

Mayanti Langer: But didn’t Patidar step up to the plate?

“Patidar can only be a Patidar but not a Virat Kohli, and I think RCB, as a management, understands that you cannot have 11 Virat Kohli in the team. You need to have 1 Virat Kohli with 10 others being themselves, having their own identities and strengths and weaknesses. And you need to use them well in terms of resources,” Rayudu said.

“You can’t expect somebody to win the game in the first season. You need to give him that leeway and time to grow into a match-winner. So I think the management has its task out, and even Virat Kohli needs to ease his standards a bit when it comes to youngsters, nurturing them, and letting them go.”