Washington Sundar – The unsung hero for India in T20I cricket
A 6 feet 1-inch bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar, who bowls right-arm off break wherein there’s no lavish turn, no contrast of a ‘carrom ball’ or a ‘doosra’, has become a budding sensation. His bowling has created its own niche when it comes to defining a conventional finger spinner in cricket.
Recently, we have seen some superlative craft of finger spin especially from the likes of Ajantha Mendis, Sunil Narine, Mujeeb Ur Rahman who have shown a realm of variations. But when it comes to Washington Sunder’s bowling then it is all about reading the batsman’s mind.
It was the legendary Sachin Tendulkar who had actually acknowledged Sundar’s ability during the IPL wherein he watches the batsman’s feet till the last moment which allows him to adjust his line and length.
A fantastic spell by @Sundarwashi5. His ability to keep watching the batsman’s feet till the last moment and adjust his line and length is a special ability.#RCBvMI #IPL2020
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) September 28, 2020
The numbers game
Ever since his India debut which happened back in 2017 against Sri Lanka, he has been around India’s T20I setup. His record in T20Is, which is a work in progress, shows some reasonable numbers wherein in 26 matches he has taken 21 wickets with an overall economy of 6.95. But what’s really significant about his bowling is the ability to not just contain runs in the powerplay but also provide crucial breakthroughs.
In his recent outing against Australia when India had to defend a score of 161 in the first T20I, Sundar’s powerplay figures were 2 overs for 9 runs where he kept things tight especially against the likes of Finch who had already hit Deepak Chahar for three boundaries in the first over. Another exemplary performance was evident when he took two crucial wickets of Finch and Steve Smith in the third T20I.
Know Your Challengers ft. @Sundarwashi5
The youngest player to represent India in T20Is and the youngest player to play in an IPL final. Here’s all you need to know about our ? all-rounder, Washington Sundar! #PlayBold pic.twitter.com/LAFfjP1XuG
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) August 8, 2020
It’s actually Sundar’s IPL 2020 record which speaks volumes and does paint a rosy picture for him. Although he only grabbed 8 wickets from the 14 matches he played, it was his eye-catching economy of 5.77 from his overall 48 overs thus making him one of the most economical bowlers in the IPL 2020.
Key to effectiveness
Speaking about his overall effectiveness, it’s not all about routinely hitting the good length area. It’s mainly about making those primitive changes where the ball has to be pitched according to what the batsman is doing thus not giving sufficient room. His full deliveries do extract some bounce because of his high-arm action which makes the batsman hard to sweep him away. His pace is also an important element wherein the batsman can’t re-adjust and create his own room to hit.
In short, Washington Sundar’s bowling is all about improvising the right thing when it comes to reading the batsman’s mind but what’s remarkable is the purity with which he keeps things simple. He might not be one of those whose bowling card may throw superlative numbers at you but will surely have something to acknowledge about.
