‘They’ve issued immediately lol’ - Hanuma Vihari to join Madhya Pradesh? Receives NOC from Andhra Cricket Association

The Andhra Cricket Association (ACA) on Tuesday granted a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to former Andhra Pradesh captain Hanuma Vihari. The batting all-rounder confirmed the development by taking a dig at the board through his social media handle.

Vihari was served a show-cause notice by ACA in March following the highly controversial incident that rocked the state association. A day after receiving the notice, the cricketer sought a NOC from the board. In his latest post on X, Vihari wrote that he had requested and mailed four times in the last two months for the NOC.

“I have been asking for NOC from 2 months, mailed them 4 times. Didn’t give my NOC. Now that things have turned, they’ve issued my NOC immediately. lol,” Vihari wrote.

I have been asking for NOC from 2 months, mailed them 4 times. Didn’t give my NOC.

Now that things have turned, they’ve issued my NOC immediately.

lol 😂 pic.twitter.com/3SrFSjdNS7

— Hanuma vihari (@Hanumavihari) June 4, 2024

Vihari finally gets green signal to represent any other state

The 30-year-old was unceremoniously removed from Andhra Pradesh's captaincy after leading the team for just one match in the last Raji Trophy edition. He cited 'political interference' as the reason behind his stepping down as captain, sparking a huge controversy in the cricket fraternity.

“I have decided that I will never play for Andhra where I lost my self-respect,” Vihari wrote in his emotional outburst on social media. He had also posted a letter of support from his fellow Andhra players to prove his statements true.  

Meanwhile, KN Prudhuvi Raj, the accused player, lashed out at Vihari on social media claiming he made false accusations about him. “Personal attacks and vulgar language are not acceptable in any kind of human platform. Everyone in the team knows what happened that day,” wrote Raj on his Instagram handle.

ACA then issued a show-cause notice to him. A player wishing to switch associations needs a No Objection Certificate and the right-handed batter requested the same from the governing body. Vihari can now represent any association of his choice in domestic tournaments.

Notably, there were reports that Vihari had also requested a move away from AP ahead of the 2023-24 season. The Indian cricketer, who played 16 Test matches, was rumoured to be interested in joining Madhya Pradesh.