Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has opined that Washington Sundar has impressed with the bat, but he would not back the left-hander to bat at one down in the foreign conditions. Sundar batted at one drop in Test cricket for the first time against South Africa and returned with scores of 29 and 31 on a difficult pitch at Eden Gardens, Kolkata. But his efforts went in vain as India suffered a 30-run loss in the opening game.
The southpaw had also done a decent job while batting down the order on the England tour. The left-hander scored 284 runs in four Test matches against England at an average of 47.33, including a century at Old Trafford, Manchester.
Ricky Ponting said on ICC Review, “I didn’t see the time and who he came in against. If he was coming in against left-arm spin, predominantly where the ball is spinning into the left-hand batter. You sort of break it down to what you were doing in the 50-over or 20-over game. You want to have the right match-ups there. So, it might have been something to do with that. He has done nothing wrong with the bat since he’s come into the Test side. What he did through that series in England – he looks every part as the Test-match batter. In the right conditions, he came at number three. I wouldn’t like him to bat at number three outside of India because there will be enough technique challenges outside of India to deal with.”
Ponting said Sundar was promoted in the opening Test to fill the number three position as he was also picked as a spinner.
“You probably look at that and think it’s a strange selection because the quality of batter that there is around India – you think, ‘Is he the best or is there someone potentially who can play better in the role?’ That might have been him filling the gap – him batting at three and being that fourth spinner in that side. It might have been to make up for that one game.”
The former Delhi Capitals head coach backed Rishabh Pant to lead from the front as Shubman Gill is likely to be ruled out of the second Test.
“It’s never easy to come and fill in for a stop-gap captain, especially when you’ve lost a Test match few days before. Rishabh is reasonably an experienced Test-match player now and being a wicketkeeper probably helps him see how the game is evolving and what’s happening in the game. So, he’s done it in IPL for the last few years and did it for Delhi before that. I think he will be fine. It will be interesting to see how he plays as captain and how he manages his style of play as a batter. I think he will handle the occasion fine.”
India and South Africa will take on each other in the second Test at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Guwahati, from Saturday onwards.
