Hanuma Vihari calls coach R Sridhar a mentor; reveals what made the WI trip 'extra special'

Hanuma Vihari, the highest scorer for India in the West Indies, reveals the symbolism of his tattoo, his love for travel and how R Sridhar moulded him.

This is an era in which the gear and logos cricketers wear must adhere to strict rules. But when it comes to tattoos, they still have some freedom to express themselves. Hanuma Vihari would agree. The 25-year-old has been one of the success stories in Indian cricket this season, emerging as the team’s top scorer in the recent tour of the West Indies (289 runs at an average of 96.33). And he has a tattoo.

Speaking to ETPanache from his home in Yapral, a suburb of north-eastern Secunderabad in Telangana, the right-hander and occasional off-spinner spoke about the series, and the ink work on his hand.

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Joy is the way they look at you!😁

A post shared by hanuma vihari (@viharigh) on Sep 9, 2019 at 4:14am PDT

Name game
“My tattoo has a globe and an origami bird. It symbolises freedom to travel. And I love travelling,” he said. “I have travelled to all the cricketing nations and have covered most of India. I want to go to Japan. I want to explore their culture.” Even the word Vihari means traveller. It’s not his surname though. Hanuma Vihari is the cricketer’s first name.

“Everyone thinks that it is a surname, but it’s not,” he shared. “My name is Hanuma Vihari. Gade is my surname but I don’t use it. Obviously, my name came from Hanuman. Vihari is a name that means traveller and also means joyful.”

The ultimate test
Hanuma Vihari had been to the Caribbean earlier. But this time, he scored his maiden Test century, that too in the presence of his mentor R Sridhar (the team’s fielding coach). It made the trip extra special.

“Everyone is approachable in the team but when you have known a person for so long, then it is much easier for you,” Hanuma Vihari said about Sridhar. “We have a good bonding, from even before I came into the Indian team. I am very happy that he was there when I scored my century.”

About the conditions in the Caribbean, he said, “The wickets were quite different from what we are used to. The conditions were hot and humid. It was a challenge to stay focused and to play a long innings. We as a team were determined and I wanted to get a big score this time around.”

Down time
It took Hanuma Vihari nine seasons of grunt work in domestic cricket to get the India cap. So, after proving himself at the highest level, he was entitled to some relaxation at the pristine-as-Test-whites Caribbean beaches.

“I liked Antigua beach the best as it was very calm and peaceful,” he said. “I had food at Indian restaurants most of the time because I am a vegetarian and the options were limited.”

There were no such problems once he was back home. His mother Vijayalakshmi and wife Preethi celebrated his first Test century with some special treats.