STANDOUT PERFORMERS India crushed Afghanistan by innings and 300 runs in Mullanpur, featuring centuries from the top order and a dream debut from spinner Manav Suthar. Amongst all that noise though on a day when Sourav Ganguly and Sachin Tendulkar were making headlines, one man went under the radar with his match-winning all-round display — Washington Sundar.
As KL Rahul and Shubman Gill got to three figures, Sai Sudharsan and Rishabh Pant scored valuable eighties, the spotlight naturally shifted towards those performances. Ashok Suthar: The young spinner drew attention with a brilliant six-wicket haul on his Test debut. But Sundar’s role was also crucial in ensuring that India coasted to one of their most comfortable wins in recent times.
Sundar, whose role was to build on solid starts from India top-order batters, came to the crease after the power-play phase and confidently extended his teams lead. Instead of trying to play aggressive cricket, he looked calm and composed in his innings and kept on piling up the runs. He was particularly brutal on the spinners, scoring an unbeaten 52 to steer India across the line towards a big innings total and keep the hosts firmly in charge of the match before declaring.
Sundar did not limit his influence to the bat, either. He had once again justified his place with a sensible and efficient bowling in Afghanistan second innings. The off-spinner took four for 36 and helped blow apart the Indian batting order, speeding up India’s win. His dual impact with bat and ball underscored the versatility that has defined his career in Test cricket.
Sundar has become one of India’s most versatile cricketers in 18 Test matches. He has six fifties, several four-wicket hauls and played different roles based on the team’s needs. Whether you have top order batting, middle/ lower order contributions or opening the bowling with a tightening role, he has always made himself available over various fields.
As the others hogged the headlines in Mullanpur, Sundar went about his business quietly and showed again why he is proving to be such an asset to the Indian Test side. He might not always feature prominently in the conversations but his contributions remain pivotal to India’s success.
