‘Disappointed with the tail-enders’ – Washington Sundar’s father after his son missed a century against England

Washington Sundar’s father, M Sundar, wasn’t a happy man after his son couldn’t get to his maiden Test ton despite staying unbeaten a couple of times in India’s recent Test series against England. In the opening Test at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the left-handed Sundar stayed not out on 85 off 138 balls with India’s no.9, 10, and 11 unable to provide him much support.

It wasn’t any different in the fourth and final Test at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In India’s first innings, he was left stranded on 96 as the hosts folded for 365. Ishant Sharma and Mohammed Siraj couldn’t open their account. Even as Ishant was trapped in front, Siraj was bowled while he tried to back away. Ben Stokes picked up both wickets.

It was a matter of courage: Washington Sundar’s father

“I don’t understand why people are surprised at his batting. I have been hearing. He can face the new ball. But we are ready for whatever the Indian team asks him to do,” his father was quoted as saying in News18.

“What I am really disappointed about are the tail-enders. They couldn’t stay on for even a brief while. Suppose India were playing, needing 10 runs to win, wouldn’t this have been a huge mistake. There are millions of youngsters watching, they shouldn’t learn what the tail-enders did,” he stated.

“It is not about technique or skills. It was a matter of courage. England were tired, Stokes was bowling at 123-126. They were not bowling at lethal pace,” he added.

Ravi Ashwin, the Indian off-spinner, also had words of praise for Sundar’s batting ability. “I am not surprised at his batting because he works really hard at his batting. In fact, we have discussions on how you should bowl more as well. He loves his batting,” Ashwin said.

In the three Tests against Joe Root and Co, Sundar managed 181 runs at an average of 90.50, the highest among the batters in the series. He also played a major role on his debut when India beat Tim Paine’s Australia at The Gabba to win the Border Gavaskar Trophy 2-1.