The Andhra Cricket Association had served notice, roughly a month after Vihari made accusations of political interference in his Andhra Captaincy during the Ranji Trophy 2024 campaign.
Hanuma Vihari Reacts to ACA Show-Cause Notice
Hanuma Vihari responded to the ACA’s show cause notice to him, saying he had “put out the facts” about the unfair treatment imposed on him and also asked the association to provide a NOC so he could find another team for the next Indian domestic season.
PTI had reported that the ACA had served a notice a month after Vihari revealed the political interference in the association for his captaincy removal but Vihari hadn’t responded to it.
“Yes, we have served him a show-cause notice and we are awaiting his reply,” an ACA official told PTI.
“This is just to find what made him react the way he did last month. He has not reached out to us, so this is a chance for him to come out with his grievances. After all, we value Vihari and his contributions to the growth of state cricket as he has played a big part in Andhra going up in the ranks in domestic cricket.”
He alleged that he was forced to step down as captain following Andhra’s opening match against Bengal in January. He had cited “Personal reasons” for the decision but later revealed the reason that the association had taken against him.
“I was captain in the first game against Bengal, and during the game, I shouted at the 17th player, and he complained to his dad (who is a politician),” Vihari wrote.
“His dad in return asked the association to take action against me. Although we chased 410 against last year’s finalists Bengal [for a first-innings lead], 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 the player was more important than the guy who gave his body on the line last year and batted left-handed, took Andhra to the knockouts five times in the last seven years and played for India in 16 Tests.”
“It has come to our attention that Mr Vihari personally verbally abused a specific player during the Bengal Ranji game in front of everyone,” the statement said. “The affected player filed an official complaint with the ACA.”
