Kevin Pietersen has asked the online hate against Ambati Rayudu to stop which began after the ex-England captain had called the former India batter a joker on air after the IPL 2024 final on Sunday.

Rayudu has sparked outrage among fans for mocking Virat Kohli and the Royal Challengers Bangalore. Following the completion of the Indian Premier League, Rayudu made a subtle dig at Virat Kohli, claiming that amassing a lot of runs every season does not ensure an IPL trophy. Rayudu went on to say that RCB should have more faith in its young players rather than relying just on Kohli.

Pietersen and Matthew Hayden, commentating on the same panel, chastised Rayudu for his remarks and cited examples of how RCB had shown faith in young players and players such as Rajat Patidar had begun to stand up.

During the same conversation, Pietersen called Rayudu a joker after he the former India cricketer had changed his clothes from orange to Purple after SRH lost the final of the tournament.

This led to a score of abuse for Rayudu on social media where cricket fans called him out over the alleged agenda.

Pietersen however took to social media and tried to settle things down by asking trolls not to hate on Rayudu and that they were just bantering.

"This tribalism with/against Indian players on social media needs to slow down! Ambati Raydu 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?" Pietersen posted.