Andhra cricketer Hanuma Vihari took a veiled dig at Andhra Cricket Association after the recieving the non-objection certificate from the board to switch the associations.
Vihari and ACA have been at loggerheads after the veteran cricket was asked to step down from the captaincy duties for shouting at the '17th player' Prudhvi Raj KN, who also happens to be the son of a politician in Andhra Pradesh.
Hanuma Vihari shared a lengthy post on Instagram handle, where he made shocking revelations after Andhra's quarterfinal defeat to Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy 2023-24. At the end of the post, Vihari vowed not to play for Andhra anymore because of the humiliation he had to face from Andhra Cricket Association.
Veteran Andhra cricketer applied for Non-Objection Certification from Andhra Cricket Association after the board served show-cause to him following his outburst on social. Vihari decided to move on from playing his state team after he was unceremoniously sacked from the captaincy by the board due to pressure from the cricketer's politician father.
Hanuma Vihari slammed the Anhdra Cricket Association for delaying his NOC despite repeatedly reminding them. Taking his X handle (formerly Twitter), Vihari wrote that he received the NOC from ACA after mailing them four times for 2 months. The 30-year-old also shared the Non-Objection Certificate letter from ACA.
"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." Hanuma Vihari wrote on X.
Seemingly, Hanuma Vihari took a dig at ACA for taking a u-turn amid change of government in Andhra Pradesh. As per the state's Assembly elections, Chandrababu Naidu's Telugu Desam Party is strong comeback with a landslide victory over the incumbent Jagan Mohan Reddy-led YRSCP government.
Meanwhile, From 2024-25 season domestic season onwards, Hanuma Vihari will be representing new state team after officially parting ways with Andhra cricket team due to forceful resignation from the leadership duties by the board.
Hanuma Vihari has played a vital role in the success of Andhra Cricket over the years. Vihari played a vital role in helping Andhra reached the semifinal of the Vijay Hazare Trophy for the first time in 2017-18 season of the tournament. In 2019-20 Ranji Trophy, Andhra reached the quarterfinal but lost to the eventual champions of the season, Saurashtra.
Hanuma Vihari represented Team India in 16 Tests and scored 839 runs, including a century and five fifties at an average of 33.56.
In first-class cricket, Vihari has amassed 9325 runs, including 24 centuries and 49 fifties, at an average of 51.80 in 124 matches.