Yalaka Venugopal Rao, born on February 26, 1982, in Visakhapatnam, Andhra Pradesh, is an Indian cricketer. He is a right-handed middle-order batsman and a right-arm off-spin bowler. He represents Andhra Pradesh in first-class cricket and has played for the Deccan Chargers in the Indian Premier League. Venugopal has also played for India as an opening batsman in a One-Day series in Zimbabwe. He has a brother, Gnaneshwar Rao, who plays for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL. Two days before his 22nd birthday, he gained national attention with an unbeaten 228 for the South Zone, helping them chase down England A's target of 501 runs, marking the fourth-highest successful first-class chase. Venugopal was part of the Indian team that won the U19 World Cup title in 2002. His impressive performances in national games brought him closer to the national selection.