We Treated It As 3-Match Series After Adelaide Defeat, Won It 2-0, Says Hanuma Vihari

Indian middle-order batsman Hanuma Vihari who was one of the heroes in the Sydney test had said that the Indian team was positive even after the humiliating Adelaide defeat. He also said that the Indian team was united inside the dressing room and described the second innings of the Adelaide Test as a freak one.

“I think it’s easier coming back disappointed, having a meeting, showing emotions, blaming it on someone or something. It only happens outside the team. Inside the team, we were united. At any stage, we never spoke about it. We said let’s leave it behind us. It was a freak inning, everything we played, we were edging it and it was going to hands. We said it might never happen in the future,” Hanuma Vihari told speaking to Sports Today.

“We Never Doubted Ourselves As A Batting Unit” – Hanuma Vihari

Hanuma Vihari also highlighted the fact that the Indian team never lost belief in their ability and they considered the remaining matches as a three-match series which eventually helped India to win the series 2-1.

“That was the discussion we had in the team meeting. We decided to look at it as a 3-match series from thereon. ‘Let’s win the series. Let’s forget about the first Test, it’s a three-game series for us,'” Vihari maintained.

“Now if you look at it, we won it 2-0. That was the positive thinking which we had in the dressing room. And we truly believed in it. We never doubted ourselves as a batting unit. We could see the fight we showed in Melbourne, Sydney, and Gabba is the true testimony of our belief,” Hanuma Vihari added.

India made history by chasing down a mammoth score at the final innings at Gabba and went on to break many records while the chase will go down in the history books as one of the greatest ever due to the inexperienced Indian team standing up to win the series.

Ajinkya And Ravi Shastri Helped The Team Through Tough Situations

Hanuma Vihari had also mentioned the importance of the stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane who led the recovery at Melbourne with a century and also the coach Ravi Shastri who had instilled so much confidence in these young boys.

“He said we dominated the two days, that’s a positive in a Test match. That’s the positive thinking of the man he is. He gives us courage and strength with the way he talks in the huddle or the team meetings, he is always positive. He always tells us to go and express ourselves, not to think too much about the result and stuff,” said Vihari on Ravi Shastri.

“Ajinkya, the calm and composure he carries on the ground, it always reflects on the others. We were able to express ourselves more. We have a clear mindset of what we need to do. He has led us well, he has got a 100 per cent record in Test cricket. So I want to congratulate him,” Vihari added.

Hanuma Vihari played one of the toughest innings in his life when he and Ashwin battled out on the final day of the Sydney Test to draw the test