"It will be very unfortunate if he doesn't play the next Test" - Gautam Gambhir wants Hanuma Vihari to play ahead of Ajinkya Rahane

Gautam Gambhir believes Team India should play Hanuma Vihari ahead of Ajinkya Rahane in the third Test against South Africa.

Vihari scored an unbeaten 40 in India's second innings of the ongoing Johannesburg Test against the Proteas. However, with Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara hitting half-centuries, the 28-year-old might have to make way for Virat Kohli for the Cape Town Test if the Indian captain is fit and available.

During a discussion on Star Sports, Gautam Gambhir pointed out that Vihari will be distinctly unlucky if he is left out of the side for the next Test. He said:

"It will be very unfortunate if he doesn't play the next Test because if Rahane has scored a fifty, then Hanuma Vihari has also scored 40 not out. If Hanuma Vihari had batted at that number instead of Rahane, probably he would have also scored a fifty."

The former India opener added that Vihari needs to be persisted with and not left waiting in the wings. Gambhir reasoned:

"The control with which Vihari has batted in both the innings, you want to give such a batter a long rope. It should not be that you play him a match, then leave him out and play him the next Test after six months or a year."

Vihari is playing a Test for Team India after a year. He was out of action for a while due to the hamstring injury he suffered in the Sydney Test against Australia but was ignored for the home series against New Zealand, with Shreyas Iyer playing ahead of him.

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"Virat Kohli bats at No. 4 in place of Rahane and Hanuma Vihari bats at No. 5" - Gautam Gambhir

Hanuma Vihari looked comfortable at the middle in both innings of the Johannesburg Test

Gautam Gambhir reckons Kohli should replace Rahane in the playing XI for the Cape Town Test. He explained:

"We have seen for a long time what performance Rahane has given. I believe when Virat Kohli comes in the next Test match, he bats at No. 4 in place of Rahane and Vihari bats at No. 5."

The cricketer-turned-politician concluded by saying that Hanuma Vihari deserves as much backing as has been given to Rahane. Gambhir observed:

"It's the right move and right direction going forward as well because if the team management has backed Rahane so much, the time has come to back Hanuma Vihari as much because he has looked very solid in both innings."

Vihari has played just 13 Tests since making his debut in 2018. He has been included in the team in tough overseas conditions and has played just a solitary Test at home.