Shamik Chakrabarty in Colombo
Shivam Dube is a very limited cricketer at international level. He is a passable batsman who also bowls right-arm medium pace, dibbly-dobblies to be precise. At the moment though, he is the only back-up option for Hardik Pandya. Seam-bowling all-rounders are at a premium in Indian cricket.
The national selectors decided to have a look at Nitish Reddy and fast-tracked him into the India squad for the tour of Zimbabwe last month. But a sports hernia ruled the Andhra all-rounder out of the tour. The 21-year-old is now working his way back to full fitness and in his absence, India have no option but to stick to Dube.
Pandya has opted out of the ongoing ODI series in Sri Lanka and without him, the position of the seam-bowling all-rounder remains the team’s weak link. The Indian team is well-rounded enough to make up for this and in favourable conditions, they have quality spin-bowling all-rounders to fall back on.
Ravindra Jadeja is arguably India’s best spin-bowling all-rounder, although he has been rested for this series. Over the last one year, Axar Patel has emerged as the team’s most utility cricketer, but the team management will take heart from the fact that Washington Sundar is proving to be a serious value addition.
Washington was very close to being included in India’s T20 World Cup squad but eventually missed out to Axar. He went to Zimbabwe and dished out a Player of the Series performance. Still, he was dropped for the first two T20Is in Sri Lanka. As he got an opportunity in the third game, he performed well enough to be adjudged the Player of the Match. In the ODIs also, the 24-year-old has been doing well.
Sri Lanka have gone back to their old pitch template to thwart India. The surfaces at Premadasa Stadium have low bounce and the ball is gripping and turning. It worked well for the hosts in the first ODI, as their spinners pegged India back and the match ended in a tie. The pitch for the second game here in Colombo on Sunday offered some decent turn even in the first half and Washington allowed the tourists to wrest the initiative through an intelligent spell of off-spin bowling.
Mohammed Siraj dismissed the in-form Pathum Nissanka in the very first ball of the match. But after that, Sri Lanka built steadily through a 74-run second wicket partnership between Avishka Fernando and Kushal Mendis. Axar bowled well from one end and was unlucky not to get a wicket. Things were getting a touch desperate for India when Washington intervened.
The ball that dismissed Fernando was tossed up a little, and as the batsman closed the face of the bat early, a return catch ensued. Apparently, it looked a soft dismissal, but Washington had beaten Fernando in flight. The latter was looking good and his wicket was important.
Kusal Mendis was done in by a fuller and faster one that went under the bat to trap the batsman leg-before. Washington was on a hat-trick. More importantly, he was bowling intelligently and varying his pace beautifully. After the first spell, his figures read 2/25 off six overs. He came back to remove a well-set Charith Asalanka. The ball turned and jumped, and the Sri Lanka captain played it straight to Axar at backward point. Washington returned with 3/30 from 10 overs. It was a fine effort.
Coming back to Dube, he bowled two overs, gave away 10 runs and wasn’t required to bowl again. Rohit Sharma used himself as a seventh bowling option. On paper, Dube is a like-for-like for Pandya but a few notches below the latter in terms of skill-set. And as India don’t have a like-for-like for Pandya, a spin-bowling all-rounder provides a better option as a back-up when he is not playing. Washington’s performance is a positive in that regard, and also for the fact that at 35 years of age, Jadeja could be used sparingly in 50-over cricket going ahead.
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