"This Is Where He Can Hurt The Opposition": Kumble Suggests Batting Spot For Sundar In Tests
India all-rounder Washington Sundar's batting position in the ongoing two-match Test series against South Africa has become a major talking point.
- Washington Sundar's batting position in ongoing Test series vs South Africa has become a major talking point
- He batter at number 3 in the first Test but got demoted to 8 in the second game against the Proteas
- "His position is correct in terms of No.7 or 8. This is where he can hurt the opposition," said Anil Kumble
India all-rounder Washington Sundar's batting position in the ongoing two-match Test series against South Africa has become a major talking point. In the first Test at Eden Gardens, Kolkata, Sundar was promoted to the number three position, with Sai Sudharsan warming the bench. However, the team management took a U-turn in the second game at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati. Sudharsan was included in the Playing XI and Sundar was pushed down to number 8 in the batting order. The all-rounder's demotion sparked widespread criticism.
To make things tougher for the decision-makers, Sundar played a resilient knock of 48 off 92 balls while batting lower down the order. While many former cricketers and experts felt he should have batted higher, former India captain and legendary spinner Anil Kumble differed in opinion.
"I know, he (Sundar) sort of was pushed the top of the order, the last game, but I think his position, for me at least, is correct in terms of number seven, number eight, is where I think he should be batting, because this is where he can hurt the opposition. And the top order needs to settle down," said Kumble on the Star network.
Sundar stitched a 72-run stand for the eighth wicket with Kuldeep Yadav after India were reduced to 122 for 7 in their first innings in Guwahati. The partnership played a crucial role in helping the hosts cross the 200-run mark, but even that could not prevent South Africa from taking a massive first-innings lead of 288 runs.
However, Proteas captain Temba Bavuma chose not to enforce the follow-on and opted to bat again.
"I thought he showed a lot of courage to just be there, hang around, and put together a really good partnership with Kuldeep Yadav. Otherwise, this, I'm sure, then Temba Bavuma wouldn't have had to go back to check whether he needed to, again, enforce follow-on. I am sure that if Kuldeep had got out early, I think India would have been batting here in the second innings. So yeah, it's a bit disappointing," said Kumble.
India Cricket Team
South Africa Cricket Team