Washington Sundar made 52* helping Axar Patel take India past the finishing line.
Washington Sundar would not have been in India’s starting lineup in the first ODI against England if the visitors had taken an aggressive stance, according to former India player Aakash Chopra.
He did, however, believe that the spin-bowling all-rounder was used because of his ability to contribute with the bat and India's batting collapses in the T20I series, which the visitors lost 0-4.
England had made 258 runs after choosing to bat first, thanks to fifties by Joe Root and Liam Dawson. Axar Patel starred with 4/62 for India. In response, despite Shubman Gill’s brilliant 80 (retired hurt), India was in trouble at 160/4 in the chase when Axar Patel (57*) and Washington Sundar (52*) helped India win the game by 6 wickets in 45.2 overs.
Chopra talked about Sundar’s spot in India XI, given he bowled four overs and was too cautious at the start of his innings with the bat.
"This question comes up repeatedly about what we are doing. I will actually play the devil's advocate, and I will also tell you my opinion. When we tried to make the team yesterday, we said that you can bite the bullet and play six batters and five proper bowlers, with Axar Patel at No. 7, followed by four proper bowlers. That could have been a thought process of going with an aggressive mindset," Chopra said during a Q&A on his YouTube channel.
"However, we had discussed yesterday that the Indian team might play three all-rounders, where Shivam Dube, Washi, and Axar will be there. This is exactly how they went. Why do they do this? There are two reasons for that. One is that this was the first match of the series in England, where our batting had already collapsed, albeit in a different format," he added.
According to Chopra, even if they let up a few more runs in the process, India was certain that they could win by using three all-rounders.
"It took time for the Indian batters to acclimatize in Ireland and England. So you thought of playing an extra batter because the chances of a batting collapse are a lot higher, and even if you are unable to take wickets and have to score 20 or 25 extra runs, you will manage with Washi, Axar, and Shivam Dube," he observed.
Washington Sundar would almost always deliver the goods with the bat, according to Aakash Chopra.
"As regards Washington Sundar, whenever you test him as a batter, he will come out with flying colors eight or nine times out of 10. He will actually perform. He will do the needful. You made him bat higher in the order this time. You used to give that number to Axar Patel earlier. You get that job done by Washi now. Whenever you ask him to justify his place with batting, he is going to do it," Chopra said.
However, Chopra admitted that the spin-bowling all-rounder has some questions to address with the ball and that it is concerning that Washington isn't bowling his full quota of overs.
"They don't give him his full overs in bowling, and that is a bit of a concern. That fact is as applicable and valid as it was earlier. Washington Sundar as a batter will continue to impress, but Washi Sundar as a bowler, whether it's T20s or ODIs, that will be a question that needs a little more time. A few more solid answers are required, which haven't come as of now," Chopra concluded.
Sundar has bowled only 189 overs in 33 ODIs, picking up 30 wickets at an economy rate of 4.84.