'Dravid Spoke To Me After..'- Hanuma Vihari Opens Up On Test Comeback

image-lsa4yvuqHanuma Vihari in action [X.com]

As India's backup arsenal in an in-transition batting set-up struggled to find its feet, allowing even England's inexperienced spin battery to take 20 wickets in both the Hyderabad and Visakhapatnam Tests, one of the names the Indian fans felt the absence of and stood curious over was Hanuma Vihari. Where is the Andhra Pradesh batter, and why has he simply been forgotten since his last outing in Edgbaston in June 2022?

After travelling with the squad as an overseas specialist who played 16 Tests and averaged close to 34 for a solitary ton and five half-centuries, Vihari got dropped following a three-match trial at the No.3 spot and hasn't been called back since. 

The selectors initially returned to the great Cheteshwar Pujara for the critical slot and then handed young Shubman Gill the responsibility. But Vihari, who has been a resurgent bat in the ongoing Ranji Trophy season after undergoing strife since his sacking, has fallen off the reckoning quite significantly. 


Hanuma Vihari Opens Up On Being Forgotten 

Vihari has contributed significantly to Andhra's success in the Elite Group B, where his 365 runs in seven innings have allowed the team to push to the second slot behind Mumbai with three outright wins in five matches.

The encouraging comeback trail has taken his first-class average back to above 50 and revived ambitions of forging a comeback, with India looking short of experience and solidity at this stage in their rebuilding phase. 

"I do feel sad and disappointed that I am not in the Test team, but everyone goes through ups and downs, and my job now is to score runs in the Ranji Trophy," Vihari told ESPNcricinfo. 

"The season has gone all right, both for the team and for me. So the ambition is to score a lot of runs and try to return to the Test team."

Vihari also revealed that barring coach Rahul Dravid, he has had no contact and communication with the decision-makers about his fate in the Test squad during this period. The 30-year-old said his idea is to enjoy his game and let the runs flow without worrying about what will come. 

"No-one has spoken to me recently, but Rahul Dravid did speak to me after my last Test, and he told me what I can improve on, but no, I haven't been in touch with anyone since then," Vihari said. 

"But I only think about improving my game and enjoying it. If I don't do that, there is no purpose left. When I go into the middle, I just want to do my best for the team and score runs."

"I am at a stage [in my career] where I have no expectations. I give my best each time I bat and then whatever happens will happen."

From the outside, it appeared that Vihari's audition to be the Pujara replacement went against the right-hander as he didn't convince the selectors of his longevity at No.3, and they couldn't fit him in the lower middle order. From his six innings spanning the home series against Sri Lanka in March 2022 to the Edgbaston Test versus England, Vihari made scores of 58, 31, 35, 20 and 11.