IND v AUS 2020: 'He does a thankless job' - Pragyan Ojha on Hanuma Vihari's role
Former India spinner Pragyan Ojha commended Hanuma Vihari and said that being a test specialist early in his career has its own advantages. He also mentioned that the middle-order batsman must perform consistently to retain his place in the squad.
According to Ojha, Vihari does a thankless job for the Indian team in the longest format of the game as he's probably the first person in line to take the shots and also to be axed if he doesn't do well. The former India spinner likened Vihari's situation to that of VVS Laxman's during the early stages of his career.
"Hanuma Vihari, this boy doesn't feature much in the IPL, doesn't feature in limited-overs cricket for the national side. Being a test specialist early in his career has its own advantages and disadvantages"- Pragyan Ojha told Sports Today.
"He is someone like a VVS Laxman"- Pragyan Ojha
The former India spinner, who has played 24 tests for India drew similarities between Hanuma Vihari and VVS Laxman. Pragyan Ojha said:
"He is someone like a VVS Laxman, I would say. Every game Laxman played used be an important game for himself as he was a test specialist. He has to consistently perform to be in the reckoning because he is not a regulating the limited-overs format. It's become important for him to deliver in any and every game he plays" he said
Ojha also added that this series will be important for Vihari as India will not have Virat Kohli this time around. He said Vihari's brilliant hundred in the pink ball practice matches won't be easy to replicate since he'll face a hostile bowling attack under the lights in the first test.
"It's a very thankless job. A young boy like Vihari , if he is getting runs he will be picked, but if he doesn't get runs or the team doesn't do well, he will be the first one in line to take all the hard comments." Pragyan Ojha said
Hanuma Vihari has played 9 test matches so far and has scored 552 runs at an average of 36 since he made his national debut in England in 2018. In his short career so far, he played many roles, including opening with Mayank Agarwal at the Boxing Day Test in 2018-19.
In the recent pink ball warm-up game at Sydney Cricket Ground, Hanuma Vihari played a sedate knock of 104 runs and stitched a solid partnership with Rishabh Pant. The 27-year-old right-hander will look to make his chances count as he will look to be in the starting XI on the 17th of December