RCB Vs Sun Risers - Gayle back.... Hanuma Vihari - who ?

Have you heard of - Produturi Akshath Reddy &  Gade Hanuma Vihari.

Hanuma Vihari is in news – born in Kakinada in 1993, he plays for Sunrisers Hyderabad. He is a right handed batsman and right arm off spinner.  Vihari was part of the successful Indian team that won U19 World Cup 2012 in Australia.. remember Unmukt Chand was the captain.  He played in all the matches, scored 31 against Zimbabwe and was not asked to bowl in any of the matches ! 

Gale storm – Chris Gayle is a phenomenon.  In match 2 of IPL 6, Gayle played a waiting game; still finished with an unbeaten 92 off 58 balls - taking 17 off the 18th over from Munaf Patel and another 15 in the final over of Munaf.  His heroics are so high… that bowlers and rivals fear him.  Last year at Bangalore against Pune Warriors on 20.4.12, chasing a tall score Chris Gayle for RCB smashed eight sixes, including five in a row off leg-spinner Rahul Sharma – and one of them injured a spectator, a little girl who had come to watch the game.   Days later, the  25 year old left arm medium fast bowler Prasanth Parameswaran who was earlier MoM in the match against Delhi Daredevils was driven almost out of the tournament by Gayle.  It was the third over of the Bangalore innings and Chris Gayle was on strike.  First one went over Point for 6; second trying a slower one overstepped, went over Point again for another 6; the free hit went for a 4 in midwicket region;  the third (regular) ball also went for 4; fourth was hit brutally over cover for 6; 5th went 91 m straight for another 6 and the last one went past the keeper for a four :  6-6+1-4-4-6-6-4 (whopping 37 run over it was)

Today, Bangalore have won the toss  and chose to bat first. The pre-match hype was that only Dale Steyn can stop Gayle storm and only Gayle can take on Steyn thunder.  Gayle took a single off the very first ball and the first over was otherwise uneventful, though a wide 4 came. 

The 2nd over it was Hanuma Vihari, the offie……….. was it a plan or putting someone on the altar ?  - and off the very first ball in IPL on his debut…………. he got the prize wicket of Chris Gayle – caught behind – a faster one, bounced slightly, Gayle went for a cut of a delivery that was too close and the mighty Gayle was on his way back…. unbelievable……….

Akshath Reddy who laboured some runs against Pune Warriors on the other day was on the field and on mike… telling Sunil Gavaskar that it was a plan – he said ‘they have not seen Hanu at all and it was planned to have a surprise element in Vihari bowling to Gayle.. claiming that it was plotted out…. there was the Q on whether Sunrisers have similar plan for Dilshan and Virat Kohli….. there was not much need as Dilshan was cleaned up sooner by Ishant Sharma

~ and surprisingly after the first over in which he got the wicket of Chris Gayle, Hanu Vihari did not bowl

with regards – S. Sampathkumar

@ 8.50 pm on 7^th Apr 2013.

photo taken from the FB of Vihari.