On Tuesday (June 4), Hanuma Vihari criticized the Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association (ACA) for providing him with a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to play for another state. This comes after the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) emerged as the leading candidate in the state legislative elections to establish a government.
Before the elections, the Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) ruled the state. Vihari pledged never to play for Andhra again in February of this year, after losing his captaincy due to political meddling. The incident occurred following Andhra’s match versus Bengal when the right-handed batter yelled at Kuntrapakam Prudhviraj, the son of Kuntrapakam Narasimha, a YSRCP municipal corporator from Tirupati.
In response, the lawmaker allegedly asked the ACA to take action against Vihari. He was requested to quit from his leadership position due to verbal abuse, and Ricky Bhui was named captain instead. Vihari scored around 522 runs in 13 innings for Andhra in the Ranji Trophy 2023-24, however, his team lost narrowly by four runs against Madhya Pradesh in the quarterfinal. Vihari acknowledged to ESPNcricinfo in March that he has sought for an NOC to play for another state on the domestic circuit.
“I want to move out and play for another team. I’ve asked ACA for a no-objection certificate. I’m awaiting a response,” he had said.
With the TDP winning a landslide victory in the elections, the ACA has authorized Vihari to represent any cricket board associated with the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Here’s what Vihari wrote on X:
“I have been asking for NOC from 2 months, mailed them 4 times. Didn’t give my NOC. Now that things have turned, they’ve issued my NOC immediately. lol 😂“
https://twitter.com/Hanumavihari/status/1797930746541424778
Hanuma Vihari last represented India in July 2022
The 30-year-old has played 16 Tests for India, scoring 839 runs at a 33.56 average, including a century and five fifties. His highest score of 111 was against the West Indies in January 2023.
Vihari is well noted for his 62-run stand with Ravichandran Ashwin in 42.4 overs against Australia in Sydney in January 2021. It saved India from defeat, and they eventually won the series 2-1. Vihari last appeared for India against England in July 2022 in Birmingham, where he scored 20 and 11.
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