India Test batter, Hnauma Vihari, who is currently leading the Andhra Pradesh Team in the ongoing Ranji Trophy walked out to bat despite a fractured wrist in their Ranji Trophy quarter-final against Madhya Pradesh at the Holkar Stadium on Wednesday, February 1. Vihari, who is a right-handed batter, batted left-handed with a heavy strapping in his left hand.
Hanuma Vihari picked up a fracture on his left wrist when he was hit on the hand by a bouncer from Avesh Khan on Day 1 of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final on Tuesday. Vihari was batting on 16 of 37 balls when he sustained the injury.
Vihari, it was revealed by the team doctor, would be out for at least 6 weeks to recover from the fracture. However, the official said he would bat if required the team requires it. The middle-order batter walked out to bat towards the end of the 1st session on Wednesday after the fall of the 9th wicket.
Vihari added 11 runs to his tally in 19 balls as he hit a couple of boundaries with the fractured hand. He played a cut shot against Avesh Khan and hit spinner Kumar Kartikeya to the boundary with a sweep. Vihari was dismissed in the first delivery after Lunch by Saransh Jain for 27.
Here is the video of one of the boundaries of Hanuma Vihari:
🫡 Hat's off to @Hanumavihari na for coming to bat after getting fractured on left hand wrist Vcourageous decision 🙇 #hanumavihari #RanjiTrophy pic.twitter.com/z0tkqqL3NI
— Vinay_Reddy.29 (@Rexxy_09) February 1, 2023
Hanuma Vihari batted alongside No. 11 batter A Lalith Mohan, who shielded his captain from the Madhya Pradesh bowlers towards the end of the first session. The two batters added 25 runs for the final-wicket partnership as Andhra headed to Lunch on Day 2 at 379 for 9. India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik took to Twitter to laud the brave effort of Vihari on Day 2 of the Ranji Trophy quarter-final.
Hanuma Vihari
Batting LEFT handed and also more importantly just with one hand , the top hand😳
Bravery to another level 🫡#quarterfinal#RanjiTrophy
— DK (@DineshKarthik) February 1, 2023
Hanuma Vihari’s brave effort comes 2 years after he played a sensational knock with an injured right hamstring in a Test match against Australia in Sydney in January 2021. Vihari batted 161 balls and scored just 23 runs in a match-saving partnership with R Ashwin on Day 5 of the Test, showcasing a ton of grit.
In fact, television broadcasters captured the footage of Vihari leaning on his bat as he struggled to climb the stairs at the Sydney Cricket Ground after helping India seal a heroic draw.
