Hanuma Vihari reacts after going unsold in IPL 2021 auction

Just over a month after his masterclass in the Sydney Test against Australia, India batting star Hanuma Vihari suffered a setback in the IPL auction on Thursday (February 18). For the second year in a row, the right-handed batsman went unsold in the IPL auction. Vihari had registered himself at a base price of Rs 1 crore and was one of the most expensive Indian players on offer in the auction.

The Andhra star was the seventh player to go under the hammer. Unfortunately, he did not find any bidders once again. The 27-year old is not the first Indian Test star to face such setbacks in the auction. Before him, Cheteshwar Pujara had to face the same situation in the auction in past. Pujara last played in the IPL in 2014 after which he repeatedly went unsold.

The senior batsman has registered himself in the ongoing auction too at a modest base price of Rs 50 lakh and finally received an IPL contract from CSK. Coming to Vihari, he last played in the IPL in 2019 when he plied his trade for Delhi Capitals. It was a forgettable season for him as he played just two games and managed to score only 4 runs.

Unsurprisingly, Delhi Capitals released him after the season and Vihari has been without an IPL team since. Before playing for Delhi, he had also turned up for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2013 and 2015 but without much success. Overall, the batsman, who is a regular feature in India’s Test team since 2018, has featured in 24 IPL matches and has scored a modest 284 runs.

Hanuma Vihari’s reaction

It did not take long for Hanuma Vihari long to react after going unsold in IPL 2021 auction. As soon as he went unsold, several fans expressed their sympathy and were quick to remind him about his performances in Test cricket. Vihari, however, saw the funny side of being unsold as he made his feelings clear with an indirect message. Minutes after going unsold, Vihari took to Twitter to write ‘LOL’ with a laughing emoji.

Here is Hanuma Vihari’s tweet:

Vihari is currently sidelined with a hamstring injury that he had sustained while batting in the Sydney Test against Australia. His heroic effort had helped India save the Test and then go on to win the four-match series.