Former India wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik believes Team India’s decision to have Washington Sundar bat at No. 3 could significantly affect his bowling in the long term.
Speaking to Cricbuzz, Karthik shared his views on India’s experimentation with Sundar in the Kolkata Test.
“Where is Washington Sundar the Test player being looked at? Is he a bowler who can bat? Now, if you are sending him in at three, you are almost telling him that he needs to focus a lot more on batting,” he said. “The moment he starts spending those long hours on batting in practice, you tend to reduce your practice for bowling because it is physically impossible to be good at both. So the message is very straightforward: we are looking for big runs from you. This could affect his bowling in the long run. It is a very tricky one.”
Sundar batted at No. 3 against South Africa in the first Test of the ongoing two-match series at Eden Gardens. In a low-scoring affair, he made 29 in the first innings and was the team’s top scorer in the second innings with 31.
Overall, the 26-year-old has had a decent Test career, having played 16 matches and scored 821 runs at an average of 43.21, including one hundred and five fifties. His best score in the longest format is an unbeaten 101 against England, which came earlier this year.
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