Hanuma Vihari bats left-handed, holds off Avesh Khan & Co despite fractured wrist

Cricket

In Sydney, Vihari batted with a torn hamstring to save the Test for India in collaboration with R Ashwin. This time, he returned to bat after having gone off when he fractured his left wrist while trying to fend off an Avesh Khan bouncer. Not just that, when he came back, he batted left-handed, to protect his left arm, which would have faced the bowler had he continued to bat right-handed.

On 16 off 37 balls when he went off, Vihari had to go for scans, where X-rays revealed a fracture. ESPNcricinfo has learnt that at the time, Vihari was told he would likely have to be out of action for five to six weeks. The team management decided he would bat only if required.

For large parts of the opening day and the first hour on Wednesday’s second day, Andhra looked like they had done well enough – courtesy centuries from Ricky Bhui (149) and Karan Shinde (110) – to allow Vihari to stay away. They were 323 for 2 at one stage. But soon after Bhui and Shinde fell, there was a collapse, and Andhra went from 328 for 4 to 353 for 9.

It was at this point that Vihari returned and took guard as a left-hand batter to protect his fractured wrist. With his left hand fully taped, he tapped deliveries back almost entirely using one hand, the right.

By lunch, Vihari had put on 26 runs in nearly ten overs with No. 9 Lalith Mohan, as Andhra progressed to 379 for 9. They were bowled out on that score first ball after lunch when Saransh Jain trapped Vihari lbw for 27.

Before lunch, Vihari managed to play out an entire Avesh over, and hit two more boundaries to go with his overnight tally of three, including a steer off Avesh to the point boundary. He even pushed offspinner Jain to point for his second boundary of the morning.

Towards the end of the session, Mohan kept much of the strike to ensure Vihari wouldn’t do further damage to his wrist.

Vihari has had a mixed season, scoring 475 runs so far in 13 innings at an average of 39.58 with two half-centuries.

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