The young Indian batsman, Hanuma Vihari has never been seen as a tailor-made batsman for the shortest format. However, one has to agree with the fact that he has the technique to play all three formats. He seems to be the batsman who has cut from the same cloth as a Rahul Dravid, an Alastair Cook, or a Cheteshwar Pujara. It is almost unfair to see him play T20 cricket, let alone take up the role of a finisher, which he will be expected to play for the Delhi Capitals in IPL 2019.
During a recent interview with CricketCounty regarding the same, Vihari said, “There’s no such preference but ideally, I’d like to bat at the top of the order. But if the management decides to make me bat a little lower, I don’t have any problems because I will learn to adapt to the situation. For me, even if I get bat down the order, I’ll happily take up the finisher role and try to express myself in the best possible way.”
Vihari might play a crucial role in ending Capital’s barren run in the IPL as he reckons that the balanced composition of the squad is what may bring about the turnaround for Capitals.
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Hanuma explained, “I feel we’ve got a much more balanced side this year than any other previous season. Players like Morris, Rabada and Lamichhane are matchwinners. Shikhar coming back for us is a great addition because he brings a lot of experience. If Shikhar and Prithvi can have a good partnership, it will give the middle order a lot more freedom. Even last year, we had a good team on paper but the results didn’t come our way. This year, we have an exciting team, a young side which can win against any opposition.”
Vihari has just played two seasons of IPL – 2013 and 2015, and while his numbers may not be staggering by any stretch of imagination (280 runs from 22 matches), the Andhra batsman has enough potential to make it big this time.
Describing the same, he said, “When I played the IPL before, I didn’t have the, you can say the strength/exposure to clear the boundary but now I feel I have it. Whenever I want to, I can clear the boundaries, even if I play the conventional shots. Now I feel I have more experience. Previous two years, I was playing for my home franchise, Sunrisers Hyderabad, and this year coming to Delhi. Having played international cricket, I have the experience and I feel now I can take my game to the next level and the IPL will be a good platform to showcase that.”
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The general consensus might dismiss Vihari from being prepared to playing limited-overs cricket and perhaps the same assumption has left him out of the contention for a place in India’s World Cup squad. He is yet to play limited-overs cricket for India, and sure enough, might not even start as a probable. But with India still sweating over the No. 4 spot, Hanuman believes he fits the bill.
“Why not? I’ve got the technique and I think I showed that in the Test matches. You need someone at No. 4 who’s got a good technique, who can adapt to the situation and I think I can do both,” Vihari said. “That’s one thing you dream about, the World Cup, when you’re young. But for now, the challenge is to perform in this IPL first. If I can do that, I’ve done my job. In the last couple of years, if you’ve followed my India A scores, I’ve done well in the one-dayers there. So, it’s not that I have to again prove what I’m capable of in limited-overs.”
