3 reasons why India are missing Washington Sundar in T20Is
All-rounder Washington Sundar is slowly getting back to bowling full throttle as he is currently playing for Lancashire in the County Championship. The 22-year-old will also play the Royal London Cup, which is a white-ball tournament. All the Indian selectors' eyes might be on that competition leading into the T20 World Cup.
Over the past year and a bit more, Sundar has shown his potential as a genuine off-spinning all-rounder across formats. However, recurring injuries have kept him out of action for a considerable amount of time and this has seen him fall down the pecking order.
Although Team India's current bowling attack seems pretty solid, the one base that has probably not been covered is that of an off-spinning all-rounder. With all due respect to Ravichandran Ashwin, who has been a legend of red-ball cricket in India, Sundar arguably pips him when it comes to the shortest format.
On that note, here are three reasons why India is missing Washington Sundar:
#3 Adds control in the powerplay overs
Now that I think calmly about this, Washington Sundar is someone who Indian cricket needs to invest on, big time.
Has a very good batting technique. In overseas Tests, he can be the batting all-rounder who can bowl 10 overs of spin.
In T20Is, can be defensive powerplay spinner.
Right from playing in the Tamil Nadu Premier League, to the IPL and then into the Indian team, Washington Sundar's first impression was always that of someone who bowled incredibly well in the powerplay.
In 55 T20s, he has taken 24 wickets in the powerplay, at an incredible economy rate of just 7.07. These are outstanding numbers for an off-spinner who doesn't turn the ball that much, and a lot of that comes down to the smartness he shows in his accuracy.
Although India have the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Jasprit Bumrah and probably even Arshdeep Singh to swing the ball, there will be days when the captain needs control from one end. Sundar will definitely be the best bet to provide it.
#2 Increases batting depth
What an Innings played by Washington Sundar at the end of this match. He scored 40 runs from 14 balls. Outstanding batting from Sundar. https://t.co/grN6Xfrxup
Washington Sundar's batting is pretty underrated and he showed what he is capable of with some magnificent performances against Australia and England in Tests.
However, even in T20s, the 22-year-old is no mug with the bat. Sundar showed in the IPL 2022 season that he also had the ability to play quickfire cameos.
Being a left-hander would also be a huge advantage for Washington Sundar, as he can be sent up the order or used as a floater according to favorable match-ups.
#1 Bowls well in match-ups against left-handers
Sundar on a roll, gets De Kock in the first over and Evin Lewis in the second over. #IPL2022
India's current first-choice spinners in T20Is, Ravindra Jadeja and Yuzvendra Chahal, both turn the ball into the left-hander, which favors the batters. But Sundar has been brilliant in the way he has bowled to left-handers.
His stump-to-stump line doesn't allow the batters to hit across the line on the on-side and also doesn't give them any width to go inside-out. He has dismissed lefties 24 times in T20Is. Left-handed batters have a strike rate of less than 110 against him, which is fabulous.
Washington Sundar has been named in the ODI series against Zimbabwe, which will take place just before the Asia Cup. The next few weeks will be crucial for the Chennai-born spinner as he might still have an outside chance of making it to India's T20 World Cup squad.