Washington Sundar has been ruled out of the third ODI against England, set to be played at the iconic Lordโs on July 19. He has been a three-format cricketer for India lately and scored a much-needed half-century in the opening game of the series, which India won by six wickets.ย
Notably, in the second ODI, the all-rounder was spotted receiving treatment for his hamstring injury while batting. Soon after that, the 26-year-old departed for just one run. After the game, batting coach Sitanshu Kotak shared an update, stating that the player was suffering badly.ย
โWashington’s injury which he had when he ran his first run to mid-off. His hamstring, I think, it looks like a bad injury, and next ball he got out,” India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak said in the post-match presentation.ย
As things stand, Kuldeep Yadav is very likely to replace Washington in the playing XI for the third ODI. The star spinner has been in the scheme of things for quite some time and despite proving his mettle in the format, failed to retain his place as the current team management prefers all-rounders.
Former cricketer Ravichandran Ashwin has spoken against the treatment Kuldeep is been given. He noted that either one of Axar and Washington must be given an opportunity and play the star spinner more often, as Kuldeep is a match-winner on his day.ย
โCome [the ODI World Cup in] South Africa, you will need Kuldeep Yadav, Axar Patel and Washy [Sundar]. Both of them [Axar and Washington] got fifties and saw us home [in the first ODI against England]. But I think there is place only for one of the two players in the future. I would love to see Kuldeep handed better treatment because he is a matchwinner,โ Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
Series tied at 1-1
The three-match ODI series is currently tied at 1-1. Indian batters failed to impress in the second ODI in Cardiff, resulting in the visitors being bundled for 233 runs. Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer scored half-centuries each, while Shubman Gill looked in good touch early on. Apart from that, the other batters failed to live up the expectations. In the second innings, Joe Root made unbeaten 99 and that was enough for England to come back in the series.ย
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