Yalaka Venugopal Rao

Infobox Cricketer


nationality = Indian
country = India
country abbrev = IND
name = Yalaka Venugopal Rao
teams= India,Andhra, Deccan Chargers
picture = Cricket_no_pic.pngbatting style = Right-handed batsman (RHB)
bowling style = Off Break (OB)
tests = -
test runs = -
test bat avg = -
test 100s/50s = -
test top score = -
test overs = -
test wickets = -
test bowl avg = -
test 5s = -
test 10s = -
test best bowling = -
test catches/stumpings = -
ODIs = 16
ODI runs = 218
ODI bat avg = 24.22
ODI 100s/50s = 0/1
ODI top score = 61*
ODI overs = 0
ODI wickets = 0
ODI bowl avg = -
ODI 5s = 0
ODI best bowling = -
ODI catches/stumpings = 6/0
date = May 25
year = 2006
source = http://content-usa.cricinfo.com/ci/content/player/35805.html

Yalaka Venugopal Rao audio|Venugopal Rao.ogg|pronunciation (born February 26, 1982 in, Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh) is an Indian cricketer.

Those who have seen Venugopal Rao play for India before the IPL Championship can say Venugopal Rao has done nothing to shatter the earth. But ask Matt Prior, Simon Jones,Andrew Flintoff and Sajid Mahmood, and they will tell you, 500 is not a safe target in the fourth innings of a four-day match when Venugopal is around. Two days before his 22nd birthday, he shot into national contention with an unbeaten 228 for South Zone to help them chase down England A's target of 501, the fourth-highest successful first-class chase. Venugopal had earlier been part of the Indian team that won the Under-19 World Cup in 2002. Prolific run-getting in domestic matches meant he was not far from national selection. Once into the national ODI team, Venugopal has not been quite at home amid the baseballesque hitting on flat subcontinent tracks. He shows the shades of the early Rahul Dravid and Robin Singh. His only half-century was a stodgy unbeaten 61 off 93 balls against Pakistan.

He consequently earned a call up to the national side for the 2005 Indian Oil Cup in July 2005, after captain Sourav Ganguly was suspended. He made sporadic appearances throughout the Indian 2005/06 season, mostly when other players were being rested under a rotation policy. He was unable to establish a position in the team, and has not played in ODIs since April 2006.

Rao was drafted into the Deccan Chargers ,in the Indian Premier League in 2008. Y. Venugopal Rao was one of the very few good men in Deccan Chargers disastrous campaign in the inaugural Indian Premier League. While Deccan Chargers were about to end their forgettable stint in the tournament, Rao had a lot to ponder even beyond the IPL standards; he made 365 in 14 innings, which had 3 blasting fifties at an Stike Rate of 124.57, he hit 16 huge sixes and 26 fours in the 14 innings he played, he is definitely considered as a high potential to play for the India T20 Team.

In July 2008, Venugopal Rao was accused of chuck blowling action by BCCI panel of umpires. He was identified by former India captain and the head of BCCI's umpires' wing S Venkataraghavan, he underwent a three-week rectification programme under the vigilant eyes of Venkataraghavan and NCA director Dav.

The Andhra player, who led Maharashtra's Ranji Trophy campaign in 2008, featured in the list compiled by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) of 20 bowlers with a suspect action. As a result, the 26-year-old, whose off-spinners are useful especially in the shorter versions of the game, was asked to attend the three-week rectification camp for all the 20 bowlers that started at the fag end of the IPL

With the team management open-minded about trying out a wide pool of talent, Venugopal is still very much in the reckoning despite an ordinary start to his international career. What's more, he has been captaining the A sides and Board Presidents' XIs.

External links

* [http://content.cricinfo.com/wac/content/player/35805.html Cricinfo profile on Venugopal Rao]
* [http://www.cricketfundas.com/yvrinterview.html Interview with Y.Venugopal Rao on Cricketfundas.com]