India need to restrict Australia to 320, says Hanuma Vihari

Aditya Devavrat 17:01 14/12/2018
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  • Hanuma Vihari sparked an India fight-back on Friday.

    Hanuma Vihari emerged as the surprise star for India on Day 1 of the second Test against Australia, picking up two wickets with his part-time off-spin to help his side rein in their hosts after a strong start.

    Vihari, who replaced an injured Rohit Sharma, was India’s main spin option after Virat Kohli chose to go with an all-pace attack in the wake of off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin’s injury.

    Playing in just his second Test, Vihari took the crucial wicket of the well-set opener Marcus Harris for 70 with a ripper of a delivery, before later picking up Shaun Marsh.

    “I was lucky enough to get that extra bounce,” Vihari said of the Harris wicket. “It was an important wicket at that stage, because he was set, and looking dangerous after lunch.”

    “I was trying to bowl my best for the team, and I was lucky enough to get the wicket.”

    On a Perth Stadium pitch that offered plenty of pace and bounce, Vihari quickly adjusted his bowling style to extract the most out of the surface.

    He said: “I tried to bowl a little quicker after the first few deliveries, because I was trying to hit the surface a little bit more and get that bounce off the wicket. Otherwise, just tried to keep things tight and let the seamers rest.”

    Vihari praised India’s pace bowlers as they toiled throughout the day before fighting back to restrict Australia to 277/6.

    “Our only plan was to be disciplined, and I thought we did well in that aspect,” said the 25-year-old. “In all three sessions, we bounced back really well.”

    “We had so many plays and misses, which happens in the game, but overall I thought the bowlers put in a great effort.”

    Australia are slightly ahead after Day 1, but Vihari believes that if India’s bowling can restrict the hosts to 320 on Saturday morning, and then he and his fellow batsmen can respond well, they’ll be well-placed in the game.

    He said: “The first hour tomorrow will be crucial. If we can get them out below 320 we’re right back in the game.

    “If we can bat well in the first innings, we’ll have a good chance, but the important thing for us is the first hour in the morning. I’m sure the pacers will come good.”

    The pitch has already thrown up some variable bounce, which could threaten India’s 1-0 lead in the series as they will face a tough time against Australia’s bowling attack. But Vihari believes he and his teammates can cope with the pitch.

    “The important thing is not to think about those aspects too much,” he said.

    “We can only expect a certain bounce and you have to play for that. If the pitch is up and down, you can’t do much about it. If we can keep that out of our minds, then we’ll be successful.”

    “You have to play ball by ball. If you’re thinking about the previous ball, you wan’t react perfectly for the next ball. So take that ball out of your mind.”

    “As a batting unit, we’ll try to be as disciplined as possible, like we did in the last match in the second innings.”

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