“It won’t affect his confidence” - Team India assistant coach backs Washington Sundar

Team India assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate has backed the bowling all-rounder Washington Sundar despite him not being used properly with the ball in the ongoing three-match ODI series against South Africa.

In the first ODI, batting at No.5, Sundar could score only 13 runs in 19 balls with a six. With the ball, he could deliver only three overs, conceding 18 runs. Shifting our focus to the second ODI, he scored only one run and bowled only four overs.

“No, it won’t affect his confidence; he’s had a very good 12 months, even more in the last 16 months. He has played some good cricket in the two games where he hasn’t given up,” Ten Doeschate told reporters ahead of the third ODI.

“I think Washi is still learning when it comes to batting, it’s becoming a very specialised role now coming in late overs, and there are certain things he wants to work on,” Doeschate added.

“I think when it comes to a finger spinner, you always need to get match-ups for a left-hander, right-hander and essentially Washi is one of the six bowlers. Washi and Jaddu (Jadeja) are the three spinners along with Kuldeep. There’s always going to be…..in those conditions particularly, we are not going to bowl more than 20 overs of spin,” he concluded.

While India secured a 17-run victory in the first ODI, they suffered a four-wicket defeat in the second ODI. Both sides will clash against each other in the third and final ODI on Saturday, December 6, in Visakhapatnam.

India’s probable XI for third ODI: Yashavi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Washington Sundar, KL Rahul (C & WK), Ravindra Jadeja, Harshit Rana, Kuldeep Yadav, Arshdeep Singh, Prasidh Krishna.

South Africa’s probable XI for third ODI: Quinton de Kock (WK), Aiden Markram, Temba Bavuma (C), Matthew Breetzke, Rubin Hermann, Dewald Brevis, Marco Jansen, Corbin Bosch, Keshav Maharaj, Lungi Ngidi, Ottneil Baartman.

Stay updated with the latest cricket news, match insights, and exclusive updates at Sky365 and download the Sky365 App to start betting today!