Hanuma Vihari, a classical middle-order batsman from Andhra Pradesh, is the most prominent example that if a player performs well in the domestic circuit, he will one day get a chance to wear the prestigious India Test cap.
At the age of 24, Hanuma made his Test debut against the likes of James Anderson and Stuart Broad in England where he showed immense determination and scored a quality half-century.
The Hyderabad batsman arose as the superlative batter after the completion of the West Indies tour where Team India registered a 2-0 victory over hosts in 2019. Hanuma was the pick of players as he accumulated 289 runs in four innings.
Hanuma has played wide-ranging attacks in West Indies, Australia, and New Zealand where he has faced the most challenging bowlers in the cricketing world. Speaking about the same, recently, during a live chat with Cricfit, Hanuma revealed the toughest bowlers he has faced.
Hanuma started with Andersen and Broad but said since he hasn’t played them in bowling friendly conditions so he won’t pick them.
“I’d like to pick two bowlers there; obviously, I faced James Anderson and Stuart Broad in Oval which was termed as a good batting wicket in England; otherwise, I didn’t meet them in Lords, or where conditions were bit helpful, so I really can’t comment about them,” said Hanuma.
The 26-year-old then picked Kiwi pacer Tim Southee and Caribbean speedster Kemar Roach as the two toughest bowlers he has faced in his career.
“Two bowlers which I found really challenging was Tim Southee in New Zealand, especially in those wickets. Kemar Roach in West Indies was quite challenging as well with the angle which he uses, so these are the two bowlers who know their skills really well, and they were at the peak of their abilities at that point of time,” added Hanuma.
At the end of West Indies series, India captain Virat Kohli said the dressing room always feels calm when they see Hanuma batting out in the middle because he was so correct in his approach. The Kakinada-born spoke about that as well and stated how it has helped him to gain his confidence.
“It gives a lot of confidence, especially from the captain and the kind of player he (Kohli) is. Coming from him was a big boost for me. I needed that confidence and having the back from team management is very important. It’s always nice to hear such thought from him,” Hanuma added further.
Hanuma has so far played 9 Tests and scored 552 runs with one hundred and four fifties. In first-class, he averages 58.13 and has amassed 6680 runs in 85 matches with 20 centuries and 36 half-tons.
