Former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir has strongly stated that the management should back Hanuma Vihari further and play him in the third Test in Cape Town when skipper Virat Kohli returns.
Because of back spasms, Kohli missed the second Test in Johannesburg, which South Africa won by 7 wickets, making way for Vihari to play his first Test match in a year; he’d last featured in the whites during the Sydney Test when he helped India secure a draw while batting on one leg due to a torn hamstring.
Vihari scored a composed 40* in the second innings in Jo’burg while making crucial partnerships with tailenders.
Gambhir reckons it would be really unfair should Vihari be dropped for Kohli’s return. He feels that Vihari could’ve scored more had he batted higher or had more support from others.
During a discussion on Star Sports, Gautam Gambhir said, “It would be very unfortunate if he doesn’t play the next Test. If Rahane has scored a fifty, even Hanuma Vihari remained unbeaten on 40. If Vihari had batted in Rahane’s position (in second innings), he might have scored a fifty as well. He has played with control in both innings.”
The former KKR captain pointed out that even though Rahane scored a fluent fifty, he has been given a long rope by the management, and believes that now is the time to put similar faith in Vihari as well.
“You would want to give a long rope to such a batter. You don’t just play him in one game, then keep him out for the rest of the year. It is very unfair. We’ve seen Rahane’s performances for a long time now. So, I think that when Virat Kohli comes back in the next Test, he should bat at number 4 with Hanuma Vihari at 5. Going forward, I think it’s a right move in the right direction.”
“If the team management has backed Rahane so much, it is time for them to put their faith in Hanuma Vihari as well, because he has looked solid in both, the first as well as the second innings,” he added.
