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Veteran Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has termed Washington Sundar as one of the biggest positives for the visitors from the ODI series against Bangladesh, which ended on Saturday, December 10. Hailing the youngster for displaying versatility with both the bat and ball, Karthik opined that Sundar could be a regular member of the ODI squad.
Although the Men in Blue lost the three-match ODI series 1-2, Sundar was among the bright spots for the team. He picked up six wickets in three games, apart from contributing some crucial runs with the bat.
With the 50-over World Cup to be played in India next year, every ODI series is being seen as preparation for the ICC event. While discussing Team India’s probable contenders for the tournament, Karthik picked Sundar as one of the likely candidates to regularly feature in upcoming one-day matches. He told Cricbuzz:
“One of the biggest plusses from this series, apart from Mohammed Siraj and Umran Malik, has to be Sundar. He is someone who has delivered with both bat and ball. The 37 that he got today was worth its weight in gold. He is somebody who can bowl for you in the powerplay. He does that in T20s and for sure he can do that in ODI cricket as well.”
Sundar, 23, has so far represented India in 12 ODIs, claiming 14 wickets at an average of 23.50 and an economy rate of 4.70. On the batting front, he has scored 212 runs at an average of 35.33.
Asked to select his frontline bowlers for India’s one-day outfit, Karthik chose four names. He elaborated:
“Apart from Mohammed Siraj, Umran Malik has looked really good and Kuldeep Yadav is somebody that I will definitely keep, apart from Jasprit Bumrah. For me, these are four bowlers who are match-winners and wicket-takers.
“I can see Bumrah and Siraj bowling with the new ball and Umran Malik coming in at one change. Add (Ravindra) Jadeja and Kuldeep and you have a well-rounded attack.”
While Bumrah and Jadeja are currently injured, Siraj and Malik did a decent job in the ODIs against Bangladesh, although their inexperience came to the fore in crunch situations.
“Pick players in specialist spots” - Karthik’s advice to India for the 2023 World Cup
Despite being touted as one of the favorites for almost every ICC event, the Men in Blue have not won a World Cup since 2011.
They faltered earlier this year too in the 2022 T20 World Cup, making an exit in the semi-final stage. Sharing a piece of advice for Team India as they build up to next year’s ODI World Cup, Karthik said:
“Pick players in specialist spots with a game plan that you feel is required for you to win the World Cup. Keep it as simple as that. Back them to do that every time that you play from here till the World Cup. I am very sure the results will follow.”
India eased their way into the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup 2022 in Australia, only to be thumped by 10 wickets by England in Adelaide.
