Washington Sundar Archives

India suffer major blow as key player ruled out of New Zealand T20Is

India have suffered an early setback in their build-up to the ICC T20 World Cup 2026 after all-rounder Washington Sundar was ruled out of the upcoming five-match T20I series against New Zealand, scheduled to run from January 21 to 31.

The series forms a crucial part of India’s preparations for the global event, which gets underway on February 7, but Sundar will play no part after picking up a side strain during the opening ODI against New Zealand in Vadodara last week.

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) termed the issue as an “acute onset discomfort in his left lower rib”.

At this stage, there is no clarity on whether the injury could threaten Sundar’s availability for the T20 World Cup, where India will begin their campaign against the USA in Mumbai on the opening day of the tournament.

In response to Sundar’s absence, the selectors have drafted in Delhi batting all-rounder Ayush Badoni as a replacement for the remainder of the ODI series.

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However, the BCCI has yet to confirm whether Badoni will also be added to the T20I squad for the New Zealand series.

Despite the setback, India are not expected to be overly concerned about the all-rounder’s unavailability for the T20Is, with several key players set to link up with the squad in the coming days.

Hardik Pandya, vice-captain Axar Patel, Abhishek Sharma and Shivam Dube are all expected to bolster the group as India fine-tune combinations ahead of the World Cup.

India will also be without Tilak Varma for the opening three T20Is, with the young batter continuing his recovery after undergoing groin surgery.

The absence of Washington Sundar and Varma will test India’s squad depth, but the management is likely to view the series as an opportunity to assess alternatives before finalising their plans for the T20 World Cup.

India squad for New Zealand T20Is

Suryakumar Yadav (captain), Abhishek Sharma, Sanju Samson (wicketkeeper), Tilak Varma (unavailable for first three matches), Hardik Pandya, Shivam Dube, Axar Patel (vice-captain), Rinku Singh, Jasprit Bumrah, Harshit Rana, Arshdeep Singh, Kuldeep Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Ishan Kishan (wicketkeeper).

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Dale Steyn criticizes Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar for chasing personal milestones

Former South African pacer Dale Steyn has weighed in on the controversy surrounding the drawn fourth Test between India and England, calling out all-rounders Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar for chasing personal milestones once the match result was beyond doubt.

With the Test meandering towards a draw, England skipper Ben Stokes offered Jadeja a handshake to end proceedings early.

India, however, declined the gesture, allowing both Jadeja and Sundar to bring up their centuries before the match was eventually called off, a move that didn’t sit well with everyone.

The incident sparked a debate online, with South African spinner Tabraiz Shamsi defending India’s choice. Taking to X (formerly Twitter), Shamsi wrote:

“Why is there such a big deal being made about the Indians choosing not to accept the offer to end the game in a draw immediately? The offer was made, the offer was rejected, and they were fully entitled to make their choice. They got their 100s which they worked hard for. Game over.”

But Dale Steyn saw it differently. Responding to Shamsi, he suggested the Indians put personal glory ahead of the spirit of the game.

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“Shamo, this onion has many layers to it, and each one will make someone cry. The only issue I see here is the one thing people aren’t realizing — the batters weren’t playing for 100s, they were batting for a DRAW. That was the goal,” he wrote.

Steyn further added that once the draw was secured, the right thing would’ve been to shake hands.

“It’s not then the time to realize they’re safe and say, ‘No, we’d prefer some free milestones.’ Although within the rules, it just seems a little… well, odd,” he added.

While conceding that Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar batted well, Steyn believed they should’ve accelerated earlier if centuries were on their minds.

“At least then, we could all agree no team tried to outdo the other in this weird situation,” he concluded.

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Sundar spins web as India book New Zealand on 259 in second Test

PUNE: Washington Sundar returned magnificent bowling figures on return as India bowled out New Zealand on 259 on the opening day of the second Test here at Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium on Thursday.

New Zealand had a shaky start to their innings as they lost their captain Tom Latham (15), who fell victim to Ravichandran Ashwin in the eighth over with just 32 runs on the board.

In-form Devon Conway then joined forces with Will Young and launched a recovery.

The duo added 44 runs for the second wicket until Ashwin struck again to get rid of Young on 18.

Conway was then involved in another important partnership for New Zealand when he added 62 runs for the third wicket with Rachin Ravindra.

The budding partnership threatened India but Ashwin, fuelled with momentum, made a timely strike to keep momentum in the home side’s favour by dismissing set batter Conway.

The left-handed batter remained the top-scorer for New Zealand with a cautious 76, which featured 11 boundaries.

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Ravindra then took the reigns of New Zealand’s batting expedition and put together a 59-run partnership with Daryl Mitchell until getting cleaned up by Sundar.

He remained a notable contributor to New Zealand’s total with a gutsy half-century, scoring 65 with the help of six boundaries including a six.

Sundar then ran through New Zealand’s batting tail and booked them on a modest total despite a gutsy 33-run knock down the order by Mitchell Santner.

Washington Sundar was the standout bowler for India, picking up seven wickets, while Ashwin bagged three.

India had a turbulent start to their innings as skipper Rohit Sharma fell for a nine-ball duck, courtesy of a squaring delivery by veteran New Zealand pacer Tim Southee.

The early jolted India’s reply but youngsters Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill did well to bat through the remaining eight overs and pushed India’s total to 16/1 at the Stumps.

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ICC unveils nominees for Player of the Month awards for July 2024

DUBAI: The International Cricket Council (ICC) on Monday, unveiled the nominees for the Player of the Month Awards for July 2024.

The ICC Player of the Month award acknowledges the magnificent individual performers on the international stage, and the names shortlisted for July span a range of formats.

The nominees for the Player of the Month include England’s pace bowler Gus Atkinson, India’s off-spinner Washington Sundar and Scotland’s pace bowler Charlie Cassell.

The Scottish pace bowler made his ODI debut in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup League 2 match against Oman.

He made an unforgettable first impression as he claimed the best bowling figures on debut in ODI cricket, breaking South African fast bowler Kagiso Rabada’s nine-year-old record.

Charlie Cassell claimed the spectacular bowling figures of 7-21, becoming the first bowler to take seven wickets on debut.

Another debutant, who left a lasting impression in his first game is Gus Atkinson, who made his Test debut in legendary James Anderson’s farewell international match during the series against West Indies.

Atkinson dismantled the West Indian batting line-up as he claimed a five-wicket haul in each inning, returning with 12 wickets in the match.

He was adjudged man of the match for his heroics as England thumped West Indies by a massive margin of an innings and 114 runs.

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The 26-year-old ran continued his impressive form in the subsequent games, taking 10 more wickets across the remaining two Tests.

He was key to England’s clean sweep victory and earned the Player of the Series award for taking 12 wickets.

The third nominee for the coveted ICC Player of the Month Award is Washington Sundar, who returned to the Indian side during the T20I series against Zimbabwe.

Sundar stepped up in the absence of India’s first-choice players, who were rested for the series following the team’s ICC T20 World Cup 2024 triumph.

The spin-bowling all-rounder proved his worth and helped India defeat Zimbabwe 2-1 in the series. He was adjudged Player of the Series for his eight wickets across three games.

He played a solitary game in the following T20I series against Sri Lanka as India’s regular players returned to the side.

However, he gave an impactful performance in the only game he played. He scored a crucial 25 off 18 balls to help India post 137/9.

He then picked two important wickets during Sri Lanka’s innings to force the game into Super Over as the hosts managed 137/8 in 20 overs.

Rohit Sharma trusted Sundar to bowl the Super Over and the off-spinner repaid the faith, taking two wickets for two runs, which earned him a Player of the Match award.

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