Nobody really contacted me and told me the reason': Star India Test batter reacts after being continuously overlooked by selectors

Hanuma Vihari is currently leading the South Zone side in the 2023 Duleep Trophy final against West Zone at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.

SportsTak

• Wed • 12 Jul 2023

Hanuma Vihari is currently leading the South Zone side in the 2023 Duleep Trophy final against West Zone at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The veteran batter has been around for a long time and even represented the senior men's national team in Test cricket. A 16-Test veteran, who was touted to be a long-term feature in the Indian Test side, seems to have fallen behind in the pecking order. Vihari reflected on the selectors' decision to continuously snub him without providing any reason.

"Definitely, there was disappointment," Vihari told The Indian Express.

"I didn't find a reason why I was dropped and it was the only thing that was bothering me. Nobody really contacted me and told me the reasons why I was dropped. It took some time and I have gone through ups and downs and I'm not worried about it now. I've put aside my personal side of things and I don't take too much stress about whether I'm in the Indian team or not. There are other matches to win and it is about winning the trophies," he added.

The right-handed determined batter made his Test debut in 2018 while he last played for India in July 2022. He has scored 839 runs in 16 matches with the help of five fifties and one century for India.

Meanwhile, India will begin their campaign in the 2023-25 World Test Championship (WTC) cycle on July 12 (Wednesday) when they face West Indies in the first of two Test matches in Dominica.

On the eve of the opening Test, the Indian skipper confirmed that Yashasvi Jaiswal will make his Test debut and open the innings. Shubman Gill will take the No.3 position in the batting order. With Rohit, Yashasvi and Shubman occupying the top 3 spots in the batting order, veteran batters Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane will form the backbone of India's middle-order.

Rohit also revealed what will be India's bowling combination for the Dominica Test. The Hitman confirmed that his team will go in with a three-pacer-two-spinner combination. In that case, Ravindra Jadeja and Ravichandran Ashwin are the automatic two choices.