Months after quitting Andhra Ranji team over ‘YSRCP pressure’, Hanuma Vihari says ‘good to be back’

Months after quitting Andhra Ranji team over ‘YSRCP pressure’, Hanuma Vihari says ‘good to be back’

Hyderabad: Four months after he vowed to “never play for Andhra” where he lost his “self respect”, cricketer Hanuma Vihari Tuesday said it is “good to be back in Andhra cricket”.

Vihari (30) stepped down as the Andhra Ranji captain in January and quit the team the next month, following a four-run loss to Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji tournament’s quarter-finals.

Soon after, he posted on X that the Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) asked him to step down from the captaincy after an altercation with a team-mate, who was then identified as the son of a Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSRCP) leader.

His charge, ahead of the state and general elections, gave the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) ammunition to attack the YSRCP, accusing it of political interference in Andhra cricket. At the time, TDP chief Chandrababu Naidu and party general secretary Nara Lokesh came out in support of Vihari with posts on X.

“I invite Hanuma Vihari to come back to play for Andhra Pradesh in two months’ time. We’ll roll out the red carpet for him and the team, and provide every support needed to win the Ranji Trophy the next time around,” Lokesh posted on X, with the then-trending hashtag — #WeStandWithHanuma.

On Tuesday, the saga came to an end when Vihari met with Lokesh Nara at the Andhra Pradesh state secretariat in Amaravati, a day after the TDP leader took charge as the human resources, IT, and electronics minister in his father Chandrababu Naidu’s cabinet.

“Lokesh assured full support for me coming back to Andhra Cricket Association. I look forward to the success of Andhra Cricket. I want to be part of it. And it is good to be back in Andhra Cricket,” Vihari said in a short video message posted later on X from the TDP handle and retweeted by the cricketer himself.

Lokesh wrote on X that he was delighted to meet Vihari and assured him of the administration’s full support. “How he was subjected to political bullying, humiliated and driven out of Andhra Cricket by the earlier government was shameful. I have invited him back to Andhra Pradesh and asked him to strive to make Telugus proud once again. He will have our full support,” his post said.

Retweeting his post, Vihari wrote on X, “Thank you so much for your support, sir. I’ll strive to take Andhra cricket forward. I’m sure the future of Andhra cricket is in safe hands.”

The TDP, earlier this month, emerged as the leading party in the Andhra Pradesh elections, with 135 of 175 seats, while the YSRCP managed only 11 seats.

Vihari’s charges & counter-charges of ‘abusive behaviour’    

Speaking about the Ranji tournament, Vihari posted on X and Instagram in February: “I was the captain in the first game against Bengal, during that game I shouted on 17th player and he complained to his dad (who is a politician), his dad in return asked the Association to take action against me.”

“Although, we chased 410 against last year’s finalists Bengal, I was asked to resign from captaincy without any fault of mine. I never said anything on a personal note to the player but the association thought that player was more important than the guy who gave his body on the line last year and batted left-handed, took Andhra to knock outs five times in the last seven years,” he said further.

The cricketer, who has played 16 tests for the national team, then said that though he “felt humiliated, embarrassed”, “the only reason I continued playing this season (is) because I respect the game and my team”.  He, however, vowed to never play for Andhra again.

In sports circles, his words stirred a storm, which took on political and caste colours in the then poll-bound Andhra Pradesh as the TDP charged the then-ruling YSRCP with indulging in vindictive politics and meddling in sports.

The ACA, at the time, issued a clarification to the press “in response to comments made by Hanuma Vihari on his Instagram posts”.

“It has come to our attention that Vihari personally, verbally abused a specific player during the Bengal Ranji game in front of everyone. The affected player filed an official complaint with ACA,” said the ACA statement.

On social media, cricketer Kuntrapakam Prudhviraj claimed himself as the 17th player aggrieved by Vihari’s “foul” language.

According to the ACA statement, in January 2024, following the first Ranji Trophy game, an email from the chairman of the Senior Selection Committee proposed a new captain for the Andhra team since Vihari’s status as an Indian national team prospect was affecting his season-long availability.

“Vihari, in response, expressed appreciation for the decision, leading to Ricky Bhui being announced as the new captain by the senior selection committee,” the ACA stated.

Its statement also pointed out that teammates, support staff, and ACA administrators had earlier complained about Vihari’s use of foul language and abusive behaviour.

However, Vihari backed his claims by posting a letter, purportedly written by his Ranji teammates to the ACA, “wanting him to lead the Andhra squad” while defending aggressive behaviour and language as common traits in the cricketing atmosphere on the field and inside the dressing rooms “for getting the best out of the talent”.

TDP’s claims of ‘political vendetta’ & caste angle

Vihari had TDP leaders on his side, and they also identified the complainant as Kuntrapakam Prudhviraj, the son of Kuntrapakam Narasimha, a YSRCP corporator from Tirupati, purportedly close to then Tirupati MLA and Tirumala Tirupati Devasthanams Chairman Bhumana Karunakar Reddy.

TDP national spokesperson Kommareddy Pattabhi Ram charged that Vihari was forced to quit, “harassed by Jaganmohan Reddy’s men”.

“Jagan Reddy has placed his henchmen even in the Andhra Cricket Association. The ACA president is Sarath Chandra Reddy, who is also an accused in the Delhi liquor scam. So, criminals, who are close to Jagan Reddy, are running the cricket association,” alleged Kommareddy.

Kommareddy and TDP politburo member Varla Ramaiah also brought up Vihari’s caste affiliation to the fore, accusing then Chief Minister Jaganmohan Reddy’s YSRCP establishment of crushing a brilliant cricketer from the Kapu community.

“Because of Jagan Reddy, such a promising cricketer from the Kapu community has now decided not to play for Andhra Pradesh. Jagan needs to stop his political vendetta,” said Ramaiah in his statement.

Kapus, a traditionally agrarian community, are estimated to make up over 20 percent of the population in Andhra Pradesh. They are a significant vote bank vied for by the TDP-JanaSena (JSP) and the YSRCP parties. JSP chief Pawan Kalyan, the TDP’s poll partner, is a Kapu.

On Tuesday, Vihari also met Kalyan, AP’s deputy chief minister now, in his chambers to discuss Andhra cricket and later posted about the meeting on X.

(Edited by Madhurita Goswami)