‘Washington Sundar not even half of R Ashwin’: Mohammad Kaif asks ‘what’s his role?’

Former India cricketer Mohammad Kaif has raised concerns over Washington Sundar’s bowling, noting that he hasn’t been used much with the ball across formats in recent months. With head coach Gautam Gambhir favouring all-rounders for added batting depth and flexibility, Sundar has found himself featuring regularly. While he has contributed well with the bat in both Tests and T20Is, his bowling has appeared fairly underwhelming in every format. He bowled only three overs in the first ODI and four in the second against South Africa, which has raised serious doubts over his bowling credentials and the lack of trust the skipper has shown in his bowling.

Kaif didn’t hold back while assessing Sundar’s bowling, stating that he is “not even half of Ashwin” when it comes to spin skills. He also questioned the management’s trust in him across formats.

“The management can answer what Washington’s role is. He is not even half of Ashwin if we talk about skills as a spinner. Even in Tests and ODIs, under different captains, not one but all of them have not given him full overs. When the game is tight, they go to Jadeja and Kuldeep. There is no trust that he can pick wickets at any stage, like how it is with Kuldeep. He will have to work a lot on his bowling,” Kaif said on his YouTube channel.

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“It’s like he is neither a bowler nor a batter”

Meanwhile, Sundar has flopped with the bat too in the ongoing ODI series, where he failed to deliver under pressure and registered low scores of 13 and 1.

Kaif continued his criticism by questioning Sundar’s overall impact, saying his wicket-taking threat has dipped and the added batting expectations are only piling on pressure. He stressed that Sundar needs clarity in his role and significant improvement as a bowler.

“First of all, his wicket-taking ability is less, and now you want Sundar to bat and are just putting more pressure on him. It is like he is neither a bowler nor a batter. Make him do one thing and give him a clear role. He can play the role of Axar in batting in the middle. That is fine. But his main role is bowling. Batting is a bonus. But if his bowling gets bad, which is evident as they are not giving overs, he will go further behind in bowling. He will have to work on his skills and variations as a bowler. If he wants to play longer for India, he has to improve his bowling,” he added.