Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra questioned the team management for Washington Sundar’s utilization after India suffered a 34-run loss against Ireland in the first T20I at Belfast on Friday. This was Ireland’s first-ever win against India in any format of the game.
Sundar conceded 19 runs in the solitary over he bowled and also went wicketless. Furthermore, the left-hander was dismissed after scoring nine runs off 12 balls and thus could not deliver the goods.
Meanwhile, Ireland posted a par score of 182 runs on the board after Lorcan Tucker and Gareth Delany scored 50 and 49 runs respectively. However, India was bowled out for 148 as none of the batters, barring Abhishek Sharma, could show some resistance.
“What are we doing with Washi? We are playing him, but are not playing him. Giving a chance doesn’t mean just playing. Giving a chance means you are given proper overs, made to bat at a proper number, given a slightly bigger role, and the role should be clearly assigned. A player gets lost many times if the role is not clearly demarcated,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.
“You are surprised to see that Washington Sundar has already played 61 matches and has batted only 26 times. He has scored 274 runs in total, has an average close to 16, and a strike rate close to 130. If he has gotten to bat 26 times in 61 matches, we say he can bat, but he doesn’t get a chance to do it, and in those 26 games, if you score slightly more than 250 runs, what exactly is the contribution?” he added.
Chopra highlighted that GT have utilised Sundar by making him bat at number four and five but admitted those positions are not available when he plays for the national team.
“His best as a batter has come for the Gujarat Titans. He bats at No. 4 or No. 5 there, and suddenly you see the rise of Washington Sundar as a T20 player, but that has happened because of the Gujarat Titans, as they gave him that number. That number is not available for India,” the former India opener observed.
The second T20I between Ireland and India will be played at Belfast on Sunday.
