Hanuma Vihari has provided his first response after his row with Andhra Cricket Association had started during an exclusive with India Today.
Vihari, in a lengthy statement on Instagram, said that he was asked to resign after a run-in with a player, whose father, 'a politician', complained to the Andhra Pradesh Cricket Association.
The middle-order batter even shared a letter from his teammates with the state unit president, showcasing the backing he had from his teammates.
The 17th player, who later revealed himself to be KN Prudhviraj, said that Vihari was doing it to gain sympathy. The ACA also claimed that players were threatened to sign the letter of support.
Here is a look at some of the major pointers from the interview.
Hanuma Vihari : As a cricketer, I've been playing for a long time now. I've gone through a lot of struggles. I've played for both states. It's not easy to play. I've taken Andhra cricket team to its standard. It so happened that I shouted at a player, the 17th player who was not supposed to be in the dressing room. According to rules, he was not supposed to be there. But he took it the wrong way and he complained to his father. And everything went wrong from there. They complained about me. And without any wrongdoing from my side, they removed me from the post of captain. Still, I continued playing for the team, because I loved the game and respected the game. Once the tournament was over, I put out a message on social media because I felt people should know the truth about what happened.
How long has it been since the incident took place? What challenges had you faced?
Vihari: It has been a couple of months since the incident took place. I kept it inside me all these months. It was really tough because I'm a player who's been playing for so long and, in a professional way. It really hurts my self-respect. I only thought about the tournament and team. Once the tournament was over, I wanted to stand up for myself or else I would have never excused myself.
There are several allegations against you ?
Vihari: What they have complained is my behaviour is not right. And I don't know they had, but then I was forced to resign. I was not okay with it. I had to resign. I had no other option. I sent an email also because I wanted to maintain the morale of the team. The actual reason was I didn't want to resign. We thought of winning the Ranji Trophy. But since that complaint, everything went wrong.
Are you seeking any help?
Vihari: I wanted to stand up for my rights. I put out a letter as well stating all the 15 players, excluding myself, and that players have stated they want me as the player and captain of the team. The team trusted me as a leader. I appreciate all the help which I have got in the last 24 hours. I came out to speak because people have to know the truth. That's why I came forward.
Do you have any questions you want to ask?
Vihari: I fought a lot when I was asked to resign. I asked people for help. It couldn't happen. After all the damages that happened, I'm not asking for anything more. I didn't want to question or answer anyone. People can make their own allegations and assumptions. I don't have any reasoning for that. I put it out there for my own peace.
How are you? How are you and your family ?
Vihari: My family have supported me, we are strong.
Are you expecting a positive response from the ACA ?
Vihari: I don't know. It's up to them what they want to respond. If they say something else, then maybe we'll take a different route on how to approach this.
